Amazon has brought on board J Allard, a co-founder of Xbox

J Allard, a former executive in Microsoft's gaming division, has joined Amazon as a vice president of product. This new position places him within Amazon's Devices and Services team, responsible for products such as Echo and the Alexa voice assistant. The move was highlighted by GeekWire, which noticed an update on Allard's LinkedIn profile. Amazon later confirmed his appointment to the publication.

Allard is renowned in the gaming industry from his two decades at Microsoft, where he played a key role as a co-founder of Xbox. He contributed significantly to the development and release of the original Xbox console, the Xbox 360, and services like Xbox Live and Xbox Live Arcade.

He reappeared in the gaming arena in 2020 as the global managing director for Intellivision Entertainment, amid the company's development of the Amico console. However, as reported by GeekWire, Allard departed the company within a year.

Following his time with Intellivision, Allard has been involved with various organizations, including GoFundMe and the bicycle registry Project 529.