Prince of PDFs, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, to step down after 18 years

Adobe's CEO Shantanu Narayen has announced he will be stepping down after nearly two decades leading the company. During his time at the helm, Narayen transformed Adobe from a traditional software company into a modern cloud-based business where customers pay monthly subscriptions instead of buying software once.

One of his biggest achievements was making Adobe's PDF technology an essential tool for businesses worldwide. PDFs became so important that people often call documents by Adobe's name, similar to how some people say "Kleenex" for any tissue. This helped Adobe grow into a company worth billions of dollars.

Under Narayen's leadership, Adobe also built Creative Cloud, a collection of powerful tools for designers, photographers, and video creators. Instead of buying each program separately, customers could now rent access to all of them through a monthly subscription.

The company also expanded beyond creative tools into business software, helping companies manage documents, sign agreements digitally, and work together more efficiently. This diversification made Adobe relevant to more types of businesses.

Narayen's departure marks the end of an era for the company. His successor will inherit a mature, cloud-focused business but will also face the challenge of staying innovative in an increasingly competitive software market.