Adobe's CEO Shantanu Narayen has announced plans to step down after an 18-year tenure that transformed the company. Narayen will remain in his role until the board appoints a successor, after which he'll stay on as board chair. His departure marks the end of an era that saw Adobe pivot from traditional software sales to a subscription-based model.

Under Narayen's leadership, Adobe evolved from a company with about 3,000 employees and less than $1 billion in revenue to a creative software powerhouse with over 30,000 employees and more than $25 billion in annual revenue. The shift to Creative Cloud revolutionized how customers access tools like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premiere, making these industry standards more accessible through subscription pricing.

In a memo to employees, Narayen reflected on Adobe's transformation and future challenges, particularly around artificial intelligence. He emphasized that the next era of creativity will be shaped by AI and new workflows, noting that Adobe has always anticipated rather than waited for the future. The company's success, he said, stems from its people's ingenuity and commitment to customers.