Astronomer Executives Resign After Viral Concert Hug

A video of Astronomer CEO Andy Byron and chief people officer Kristin Cabot embracing on Coldplay’s jumbotron went viral, drawing more than 130 million views and prompting frontman Chris Martin’s onstage quip about an affair or shyness. The clip sparked intense social-media scrutiny and an internal probe that led to Byron’s resignation and Cabot’s subsequent departure. Multiple sources now say the encounter was an inappropriate hug between colleagues, not a romantic affair, and a person close to Cabot called the ensuing public shaming and job losses unfair. Reports say Cabot and her husband Andrew had been privately and amicably separated for weeks, that he attended the concert with a date, and that Cabot filed for divorce in August. Astronomer hired Gwyneth Paltrow as a temporary spokesperson amid the fallout, underscoring how the brief onstage moment escalated into a major corporate and public-relations crisis.