CEO Andy Byron was caught hugging his chief people officer—and people are furious

The clip, posted on TikTok Thursday, appears to show Astronomer CEO Andy Byron holding his company’s chief people officer, Kristin Cabot, in his arms at a Boston Coldplay concert. Byron is seen in the video clutching Cabot from behind as the pair smiles in the Gillette Stadium crowd. Coldplay frontman Chris Martin can be heard saying “Oh look at these two,” as they appear on the jumbotron, only for Cabot to quickly cover her face and turn away while Byron ducks to avoid the cameras. 

Martin reacted saying, “Either they’re having an affair or they’re very shy” as the crowd cheered and laughed. The band played at the Boston venue Tuesday and Wednesday night.

After the video went viral, receiving more than 20 million views, internet sleuths identified the duo as Byron and Cabot. Byron, who is married to Megan Kerrigan Byron, has a home near Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts. He and Kerrigan also appear to have two sons. It is unclear if Kerrigan also attended the concert.

Kerrigan’s Facebook page has since been deleted after users inundated her account with comments regarding the viral clip of her husband. Prior to its deletion, she removed her husband’s last name from her profile. 

She did not respond to a Fortune request for comment.

Coldplay’s X account joined in on the internet debate posting to the platform: “Starting with our next show, we’re introducing camera-free audience sections for people and their sidepieces.”

Upon identifying Byron as the assumed man in the video, dozens of users on LinkedIn flocked to his profile criticizing the executive, some with Coldplay lyric puns, in a pile-on more commonly seen on X or Facebook than the social network for job-seekers and aspiring thought leaders.

“Lights did not guide Andy home,” one comment seen by Fortune read, referencing the band’s song “Fix You.”

Meanwhile another commenter simply asked, “Who is the lady on the jumbotron, Andy?”

Byron, according to his now-deleted LinkedIn account, graduated from Providence College and ultimately became CEO of Astronomer in 2023.

Astronomer is a private data infrastructure and operations company that achieved unicorn status in 2022 with a $1 billion or more valuation. The company recently moved its headquarters to New York City, and secured $93 million in series D funding in a round led by Bain Capital Ventures and Salesforce Ventures. 

Cabot, according to her now-defunct LinkedIn, also uses the last name “Thornby” and joined Astronomer in November 2024. She previously worked at ObserveIT, Neo4j, and Proofpoint. Public records suggest she has been married at least once. Her current marital status, however, could not be confirmed. 

In a LinkedIn post seen by Fortune announcing her hiring, Byron praised Cabot’s “exceptional leadership and deep expertise in talent management, employee engagement, and scaling people strategies.”

Astronomer has since turned comments off on its social media accounts and is yet to respond to the controversy.  

Astronomer, Byron, and Cabot did not respond to a Fortune request for comment.