HP has picked an outsider to lead it through the AI PC era. The company's board unanimously appointed Emma Walmsley as CEO, effective January 4, 2027, HP announced. Walmsley most recently ran pharmaceutical company GSK and has been on Microsoft's board for seven years.
She succeeds Bruce Broussard, interim CEO since February, who will become board chair, replacing Chip Bergh. «Emma is a proven CEO with a track record of leading organizations at scale and guiding them through significant change,» Broussard said, pointing to opportunities «as AI moves to the edge.»
CRN reports that the appointment ends a nine-month search that began when Enrique Lores stepped down to become CEO of PayPal, and that HP is pursuing AI-driven growth while managing surging memory costs. Walmsley spent about 15 years at GSK, nearly nine of them as CEO.
