Oracle said Larry Ellison, its co-founder and longtime CEO, will be stepping down, effective immediately. Ellison, who is believed to be the fifth-wealthiest man in the world, will be replaced by Mark Hurd and Safra Catz, Oracle said. In an unusual move, Hurd and Catz will both be named CEO of the company—not co-CEOs. Ellison will become executive chairman and chief technology officer. Oracle said manufacturing, legal and finance functions would report to Catz and sales, service and business units would report to Hurd. Software and hardware engineering will report to Ellison. "Larry has made it very clear that he wants to keep working full time and focus his energy on product engineering, technology development and strategy," Dr. Michael Boskin, the presiding director of Oracle's board, said in a press release. The two-time university drop-out created the biggest business software company in the world, and has taken on competitors like IBM and Microsoft to help define the modern technological age.
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