A Top Amazon Executive Just Departed for the Second Time in a Year

Will the second time be the charm?

Jon McCormack, the chief technology officer of the Amazon unit that makes devices such as the Kindle and Fire TV, has left the company for the second time in less than a year, according to a source. This time he’s headed to Google, where he has taken a job inside Google’s Advanced Technologies and Projects group, which works on futuristic projects, according to an update he made to his LinkedIn profile. A Google spokesperson confirmed the hire.

McCormack and a spokesperson for Amazon didn’t respond to requests for comment.

McCormack first left Amazon late last year, after overseeing teams responsible for making software for the Kindle, Fire phone and other Amazon hardware. But he returned in March after a two-month stint at Yahoo. At Amazon, McCormack most recently reported to David Limp, who runs the entire devices business and is one of only a handful of senior vice presidents at the company.

At Google, McCormack will build out an ecosystem of developers to contribute to Google’s Advanced Technologies and Projects group, according to a spokesperson. ATAP is led by Regina Dugan, the former head of the Pentagon’s research group, DARPA, who has described her group’s mission as “trying to do epic shit.” It is designed to tackle ambitious projects — like augmented reality and wearable tech — in two-year stints. Most recently, at Google’s I/O developer conference, ATAP announced a new micro-sensor that can turn textiles and garments into connected devices.

The group has had some recent hiccups: Last week, ATAP said that Project Ara, its modular smartphone meant to launch this year, will be delayed until 2016. Currently, ATAP remains part of Google proper, not a standalone Alphabet company.

McCormack posted the photograph below to Facebook this morning.

Additional reporting by Mark Bergen.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

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