Asha Sharma, who became Xbox CEO earlier in 2026 after moving from Microsoft's Core AI group, has been named to a Federal Reserve task force focused on productivity and jobs [1, 2, 3]. The group will evaluate the economic effects of new general-purpose technologies, including artificial intelligence [1, 2, 4, 3].
The task force includes prominent figures such as Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz, and Charles I. Jones, an economics professor at Stanford currently on leave at Anthropic [1, 2, 4, 3]. Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh announced five new private sector task forces in July to improve the Fed’s policy tools and methods as the U.S. economy undergoes rapid change [2, 4, 3]. Warsh said, "Each task force will carefully consider whether policymakers’ means and methods... can be improved upon" to meet goals of price stability and maximum employment [2].
As Xbox CEO, Sharma has implemented a major restructuring that will cut about 3,200 jobs over the 2026-2027 fiscal year, including 1,600 announced in early August [1, 2, 4, 3]. She said, "We know that great technology gets better when it gets simpler, not bigger," and emphasized reducing management layers from as many as 14 down to no more than five or ideally three [1]. The layoffs also involve studio closures, project cancellations, and a sharpened focus on key franchises like Halo, Minecraft, and Candy Crush [1, 4].
Though Sharma supports AI advances such as neural rendering for game graphics, she canceled Microsoft's AI-powered gaming tool Copilot early in her tenure [1].
Sharma’s role on the Federal Reserve task force will involve assessing how AI and other technologies affect productivity and job markets amid shifting economic conditions. The task force is expected to provide input on new approaches and tools for U.S. economic policymaking.
The Federal Reserve will continue task force work into the coming months as part of Chairman Warsh’s efforts to update and sharpen the Fed’s institutional performance [2, 3].
