All the news from Amazon’s September 2023 product launch event

They say the heart of any home is the kitchen, and while nice in theory, we all know that in most American homes, it’s the room with the biggest TV where everyone hangs out. In my decade-plus of covering the smart home, it’s baffled me that no company has really embraced the TV as a central hub for the smart home. 

Yes, you can navigate three menus down on a Fire TV-enabled television and turn a smart light off, and your Apple TV or Google Chromecast will let you view a security camera livestream if you know the exact incantation to summon it. But to date, the relationship between the smart TV and the smart home has been more parasitic than symbiotic. 

Panos Panay has always been the force behind Microsoft’s Surface line. He helped bring Surface to life as a secret project more than 10 years ago. He’s presented the new devices onstage at events, showed up at malls to promote Surface hardware, and has steered Microsoft’s Surface tablets to success in the years since.

Now, he’s leaving in a surprise departure announced just days before Microsoft’s next big Surface event. Panay will no longer be presenting at Microsoft’s showcase on Thursday but will remain at the company for another couple of weeks as part of a transition process. He’s reportedly joining Amazon to replace Dave Limp and lead Amazon’s Echo and Alexa push. Amazon is also holding its own hardware event on Wednesday.

September and October are some of the most exciting months of the year if you’ve been waiting all year to see the latest and greatest tech, even if that just means meeting the annual new iPhone. Of course, events are also planned for entertainment, cars, and more, and you’ll be able to catch all the latest news on major events and conferences here on The Verge.

The IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin kicked off the slate, leading into the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) that runs through September 17th. The schedule truly picked up with Apple’s iPhone 15 launch event, dubbed “Wonderlust,” which was closely followed by dueling events from Nintendo and Sony PlayStation on September 14th.

Panos Panay is reportedly joining Amazon, Bloomberg reports. The former Windows and Surface chief announced his departure from Microsoft earlier today, and Bloomberg reports that he’s moving to Seattle’s other giant tech company to oversee Amazon’s vast hardware products.

Panay has been instrumental in the creation of Surface devices and much of their success and will no longer be presenting at Microsoft’s event on Thursday. He will remain at Microsoft for another couple of weeks as part of a transition process before joining Amazon.

Dave Limp, Amazon’s SVP of devices and services, plans to retire in the coming months, as reported by The Wall Street Journal. His retirement marks the end of a more than 13-year career at the company.

Amazon published emails to staff from CEO Andy Jassy and Limp addressing the departure on its website. Jassy says that Limp will stay in his role “for the next few months” and that the company plans to announce a successor “in the coming weeks.”