Mark Hurd, the CEO of Oracle, has died at the age of 62.
The news was shared in an announcement on Mark Hurd's personal website, authored by Oracle CTO and cofounder Larry Ellison.
"It is with a profound sense of sadness and loss that I tell everyone here at Oracle that Mark Hurd passed away early this morning," Ellison wrote. "Mark was my close and irreplaceable friend, and trusted colleague. Oracle has lost a brilliant and beloved leader who personally touched the lives of so many of us during his decade at Oracle."
Hurd, who had also served as CEO of Hewlett-Packard, joined Oracle in 2010 when he became co-president together with Safra Catz. They were promoted to co-CEO in 2014 when Ellison stepped down as chief executive, taking instead the title of chief technology officer.
Hurd played a critical role in Oracle's growth over the past 10 years. He also has been instrumental in Oracle's bid to establish a stronger presence in the cloud, where it is battling it out with stronger rivals, led by Amazon, Microsoft and Google.
Hurd became a prominent figure in Silicon Valley when he was tapped by Hewlett-Packard to be its CEO after the departure of Carly Fiorina. But his tenure ended amid allegations of sexual harassment. The HP board subseqently concluded that there accusations weren't true, although they did find irregularities in his expense account reporting.
"All of us will miss Mark's keen mind and rare ability to analyze, simplify and solve problems quickly," Ellison wrote. "Some of us will miss his friendship and mentorship. I will miss his kindness and sense of humor. ... I know that many of us are inconsolable right now, but we are left with memories and a sense of gratitude…that we had the opportunity to get know Mark, the opportunity to work with him…and become his friend.
Hurd is survived by his wife, Paula, and two daughters.
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