Microsoft Appoints IIT Madras Graduate Pavan Davuluri As Windows And Surface Boss

Davuluri has strong connection with India, having graduated from the esteemed IIT Madras.

Microsoft has appointed Pavan Davuluri as the new head of Windows and Surface divisions.

Source : Pavan Davuluri/X

Microsoft has appointed Pavan Davuluri as the new head of Windows and Surface divisions, the media has reported. Following Panos Panay's unexpected move to Amazon last year, Microsoft divided the Windows and Surface teams, assigning separate leaders to each. Davuluri assumed control of Surface silicon and devices, while Mikhail Parakhin led a newly formed team fosucing on Windows and web experiences. With Parakhin opting to pursue other opportunities, Davuluri will now oversee both Windows and Surface operations, says a report by The Verge.

Davuluri has strong connection with India, having graduated from the esteemed IIT Madras. His elevation to this new role adds him to the roster of Indian leaders in prominent positions within US tech firms, alongside notable figures such as Sundar Pichai and Satya Nadella, among others.

Davuluri has assumed leadership of Microsoft's Windows and Surface division, directly reporting to Rajesh Jha. With over 23 years of experience at Microsoft, Davuluri played a significant role in the company's collaboration with Qualcomm and AMD to develop tailored processors for Surface devices.

"This will enable us to take a holistic approach to building silicon, systems, experiences, and devices that span Windows client and cloud for this AI era,” explains Jha, as reported by The Verge.

Days before the Windows restructuring, Mustafa Suleyman, co-founder of Google DeepMind and former CEO of Inflection AI, joined Microsoft to lead a newly established AI team. Microsoft further expanded its talent pool by hiring several Inflection AI employees, including co-founder Karén Simonyan, who now serves as the chief scientist of Microsoft AI. This strategic move allows Microsoft to onboard most of Inflection's staff without attracting direct regulatory scrutiny, marking it as a calculated talent acquisition maneuver.

During a transition period, Mikhail Parakhin will report to Kevin Scott, though his long-term prospects within Microsoft appear uncertain, with indications suggesting his "new roles" may lie outside the company. Parakhin's recent focus included contributions to Bing Chat before assuming broader Windows engineering duties and involvement in Microsoft Edge enhancements.