Jim Lanzone took over Yahoo in September 2021 aiming to turn the company’s fortunes around having previously worked on similar projects at AskJeeves and CBS.
Lanzone’s strategy for Yahoo included getting rid of money-losing units and making acquisitions to bolster Yahoo’s best properties, like sports betting app Wagr.
He also brought in capable executives like former ESPN digital head Ryan Spoon, who now heads Yahoo Sports and has boosted profits and grown the company’s audience.
Among Lanzone’s canniest moves has been the acquisition of AI-powered news aggregator Artifact, the AI-powered news aggregator created by Instagram cofounders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger.
Yahoo is now looking to remake Yahoo Finance using AI and focusing more on data to enhance its position as a leader among consumer investment tools.
