Reid Hoffman leaves Microsoft board to focus on AI cancer drug-discovery startup

Reid Hoffman, the LinkedIn co-founder and venture capitalist, is leaving Microsoft’s board later this year as he shifts his attention to a new artificial intelligence venture. Microsoft said Hoffman will not stand for re-election at its 2026 annual shareholder meeting and will remain a director until that meeting takes place.

According to a Microsoft filing reported by GeekWire and Morningstar, Hoffman’s departure is not tied to any disagreement with the company’s management, policies or operations. Microsoft thanked him for his contributions, ending a board run that began in 2017 after the company’s acquisition of LinkedIn, which Hoffman co-founded in 2003.

Hoffman said on his “Possible” podcast that he wanted to return to “founder mode” and focus on Manas AI, a cancer drug-discovery startup he co-founded. TechCrunch described the move as a step away from a very profitable decade on Microsoft’s board and toward deeper involvement in the startup, which it identified as an AI drug-discovery company.

His exit also comes after several years of shareholder scrutiny. GeekWire reported that a conservative shareholder group, the National Legal and Policy Center, had opposed his re-election for three straight years, citing his political activities and other concerns, though shareholders ultimately re-elected him each time, most recently in December 2025.

Hoffman has been a prominent figure in the tech industry beyond Microsoft. Morningstar noted that he is also a venture capitalist and an early backer of OpenAI, and that he resigned from OpenAI’s board in 2023 to avoid conflicts of interest. His departure from Microsoft closes a long chapter at the company while underscoring how many senior technology figures are increasingly dividing their time between corporate governance and the fast-moving AI startup world.

For Microsoft, the change removes one of the most recognizable independent directors from its board at a time when the company remains deeply involved in artificial intelligence through product development, investments and partnerships. For Hoffman, it marks a clear turn away from boardroom oversight and back to building companies directly.