Bret Taylor (pictured left) will step down as vice chair and co-CEO of Salesforce.com Inc. on January 31, 2023, the company announced on Wednesday.

"I am grateful for six fantastic years at Salesforce," Taylor stated. "After a lot of reflection, I've decided to return to my entrepreneurial roots. Salesforce has never been more relevant to customers, and with its best-in-class management team and the company executing on all cylinders, now is the right time for me to step away," he added.

Following Taylor's departure, co-CEO Marc Benioff (pictured right) will become the sole chair and CEO of the cloud-based software firm. Benioff called Taylor's decision to resign "bittersweet."

Salesforce shares dropped over 5% in after-hours trading after the company broke the news and reported its third-quarter earnings.