Lambda Assembles Leadership Team to Power Gigawatt-Scale AI Infrastructure for the Superintelligence Era

Co-founder Stephen Balaban to lead technology vision full-time as CTO; global infrastructure operator Michel Combes named CEO; former AT&T CEO John Donovan appointed Chairman of the Board

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lambda, the Superintelligence Cloud, today announced an expanded leadership structure assembled to match the scale of the opportunity in front of the company. As demand for AI compute accelerates globally, Lambda has built the strongest leadership team in its history, bringing in new executives with large-scale capital formation and infrastructure deployment experience.

Co-founder Stephen Balaban will lead Lambda's technology strategy and product vision full-time as CTO, with global infrastructure operator Michel Combes appointed CEO, effective May 2026. Lambda also named John Donovan, former CEO of AT&T Communications, as Chairman of the Board. Co-founder Michael Balaban will take on a new Chief Product Officer role, leading product execution to connect Lambda's infrastructure to the developers and enterprises that rely on it.

"Building an iconic business takes many decades and it’s all about the people who join you along the way," said Stephen Balaban. "Michel and John have raised and deployed many billions across some of the most infrastructure-intensive businesses in history. It’s an honor to have them bring their experience to the Lambda team and I’m excited to work alongside them and continue to lead our product vision, technology development, and strategy."

These appointments come as part of a planned leadership build following Lambda's $1.5B+ Series E fundraise in November 2025, which includes the recent additions of Jerry Hunter, former COO of Snap and early AWS infrastructure leader, as Vice Chairman of Compute Delivery, Charles Fisher, former CFO of Turo and senior finance executive at Charter Communications, as CFO, and David Connolly, former General Counsel at Altice, as CLO. Together, this leadership team is built to reach 3GW of AI compute under management by 2030.

Building the Capital and Operating Muscle to Meet Surging AI Compute Demand

Combes presently serves as Chairman and CEO of Brightspeed and previously served as CEO of Softbank International, Sprint, and Alcatel-Lucent over the last two decades, running companies that built the physical foundation the internet runs on. As CEO, he will help Lambda lay the AI infrastructure foundation for the next century - with a focus on capital formation, expanding the company's AI factory footprint, and building operating systems that keep pace with the business's growth trajectory.

"When I met Stephen and his team, and saw what they have built, I knew this was the opportunity I have been looking for," said Combes. "With Lambda’s technology, partnerships, and customer demand, its future is limited only by its ambition. I’m excited to contribute my experience leading capital-intensive businesses to continue scaling Lambda’s operational architecture and deploying capital to realize the incredible opportunities Lambda has earned."

Lambda's customers are building generational technology on the compute Lambda provides. AI infrastructure has become critical infrastructure, as essential and as unforgiving as the telecom networks the world already depends on. Combes has spent his entire career building and operating at precisely that level.

Stephen and Michael Balaban co-founded Lambda in 2012 and have spent more than a decade building the company into an AI infrastructure leader that serves frontier labs, enterprises, and hyperscalers. As co-founder and CTO, Stephen will lead Lambda's technology strategy and architecture. Stephen began training neural networks in 2012 and has published research in NeurIPS and SPIE. Michael, who scaled the company's technology foundation from its earliest days, will lead the product layer as CPO.

A Board Chairman with a Track Record of Scaled Infrastructure Buildouts

Donovan brings decades of experience in large-scale infrastructure deployments to Lambda. As CTO of AT&T and later Group President of AT&T Technology and Operations, he led the company through one of the most significant network transformations in telecom history, overseeing the transition to software-defined infrastructure at global scale. He went on to serve as CEO of AT&T Communications, running multibillion-dollar network operations. His experience with the scale and complexity of capital-intensive businesses will inform his role on Lambda's board, where he will provide governance, oversight, and strategic direction.

"I have spent my career building and leading infrastructure at global scale. When I looked at Lambda, I saw a team and a technology that are defining what comes next," said Donovan. "I do not take on roles lightly. I am here because this is one of the most compelling opportunities I have seen."

About Lambda

Lambda, The Superintelligence Cloud, is a leader in AI cloud infrastructure serving tens of thousands of customers.

Founded in 2012 by published machine learning engineers. Lambda builds supercomputers for AI training and inference. Our customers range from AI researchers to enterprises and hyperscalers.

Lambda's mission is to make compute as ubiquitous as electricity and give everyone the power of superintelligence. One person, one GPU.