Discord co-founder and CEO Jason Citron is “passing the torch,” stepping down as CEO of the chat platform, although he plans to remain active within the company.

Discord is one of the more popular chat platforms on the market, with “more than 200 million monthly active users worldwide.” The platform gained popularity among gamers, with the demographic spending “2 billion hours playing games each month across thousands of titles.” Although gamers still constitute the platform’s core user base, it has expanded beyond that with features that appeal to a broader base of users.

Citron says the decision comes at a time when the company is preparing for its next chapter of growth as it works toward an eventual IPO. Humam Sakhnini, a former Activision Blizzard executive, will step into the roll of CEO, while Citron will remain as a member of the board and Advisor to the CEO.

Building Discord has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. From the very beginning, our mission has been about bringing people together around games. It’s a mission I’ve dedicated my career to, and seeing it come to life through all of you and the impact we’ve made together has been nothing short of extraordinary. I’ve learned more than I ever imagined I would and I’m deeply grateful for so many friendships, challenges, and achievements along the way.

As we enter our next phase, I’ve been reflecting on how I can best contribute to Discord’s long-term success. The job of a CEO is constantly evolving, and over the years I have continuously “hired myself out of a job.” Usually that means delegating work and then taking on different leadership challenges. However, as I look at what is needed of Discord’s CEO over the next few years, I realize that it’s time for me to literally “hire myself out of a job.”

One thing I know for sure: our company is bigger than any one person. Its future depends not just on me, but on a strong leadership team, a clear vision for what comes next, and all of your incredible talent, care, and hard work. Today’s Discord has all of that. It’s by far the best version of the company we’ve ever had. We have a clear strategy, new business lines to grow into, love and passion from our users, and an incredible team of people working tirelessly to deliver for them.

From this position of strength, it feels like the right time to transition from CEO to Board Member and Advisor. So I am thrilled to welcome Humam Sakhnini as the next CEO of Discord.

Sakhnini praised Citron, as well as co-founder Stan Vishnevskiy, for building a prominent platform that has played a pivotal role in hundreds of millions of users’ workflows.

“I’m incredibly excited to join Discord at such a pivotal moment. Discord stands as a massive, foundational part of the gaming ecosystem that millions of players, developers, and publishers rely on every day. What Jason and Discord co-founder and CTO Stan Vishnevskiy have built is truly remarkable — a platform with an undeniable product-market fit where hundreds of millions of people connect around their passion for gaming and shared interests. I look forward to working with Stan and Discord’s talented team to scale our business while staying true to the company’s core mission and the special connection it has with player communities. We’re still at the beginning of gaming’s impact on entertainment and culture, and Discord is perfectly positioned to play a central role in that future.” — Humam Sakhnini, Incoming Discord CEO