Light & Wonder names Aimee Hoyt as chief people officer in Las Vegas

Light & Wonder has appointed Aimee Hoyt as its new chief people officer, the company announced on 13 October 2026. Hoyt will be based in Las Vegas and joins the supplier from Palo Alto Networks, where she most recently served as chief people officer; she stepped down from that role in January 2026 and continued as an adviser until May 2026.

Light & Wonder chief people officer: immediate remit and location

In her role as chief people officer for Light & Wonder, Hoyt will oversee the firm’s global people strategy, talent, culture, organisational effectiveness and M&A integration. The company statement said Hoyt’s leadership and expertise in people and culture will help drive Light & Wonder’s next chapter of growth.

“I’m thrilled to return to the Las Vegas community and partner with this incredible team of creators who are bringing world-class games and experiences to life globally,” Hoyt said in comments released by the company.

She thanked CEO Matt Wilson for the opportunity and reiterated her focus on building on a foundation of a culture rooted in innovation and winning together. The statement and Hoyt’s remarks were published alongside the appointment notice on 13 October 2026.

Career timeline: moves between gaming, cybersecurity and tech

Hoyt joined Palo Alto Networks, a cybersecurity firm, in January 2024 as chief people officer. She left the people chief role in January 2026 and remained with Palo Alto Networks as an adviser through May 2026. Prior to that she had a nearly five-year spell at International Game Technology (IGT), serving as executive vice-president of HR between 2010 and 2015.

Her CV also includes a period as chief HR officer at enterprise AI firm Rackspace and a role as chief people officer at DNA sequencing technology company Illumina. The appointment at Light & Wonder reunites Hoyt with the Las Vegas market after earlier work in the city while at IGT.

Succession and context inside Light & Wonder

Hoyt replaces Roxane Lukas, who left Light & Wonder in September 2026. Lukas had taken the company post of chief people capability officer in August 2022. Lukas’s background includes senior people and HR roles at Electronic Arts and at Scopely, the publisher of Monopoly GO!.

The Light & Wonder statement did not disclose any additional structural changes in the people leadership team. Matt Wilson, Light & Wonder’s chief executive officer, was named in Hoyt’s public thank-you message.

Commercial backdrop: Light & Wonder performance in the US market

As reported by the NA Slots Tracker, published in partnership with eGaming Monitor (EGM), Light & Wonder titles rank among the top-performing slots in the United States. Huff N’ Even More Puff Grand and Huff N’ Puff High Rise are both listed in the top 10 of that ranking. Light & Wonder cited those results in materials accompanying the personnel announcement to underline the studio and product performance that Hoyt will join.

The reference to top-performing slot titles highlights the operational environment Hoyt is entering: a company with visible commercial assets and a roster of live games that the business and investor community monitor closely. The mention of slots appears alongside the personnel news to position the hire as supporting ongoing product-led growth within the organisation. For coverage of Light & Wonder’s game portfolio, see reporting in our /casino section.

What the hire signals for talent strategy and M&A work

Light & Wonder made the hire explicit about M&A integration responsibilities. That allocation of duties suggests the company expects future transactions or intends to prioritise the integration of recently completed deals as part of the people agenda. Hoyt’s brief includes talent, culture and organisational effectiveness, which are the standard vectors companies use to measure integration success after an acquisition.

For HR and vendor teams supporting integration programs, the combination of talent & M&A duties clarifies where internal priorities will sit. External partners who advise on post-deal integration and people technology should expect the new chief people officer to lead those conversations from Light & Wonder’s side; the company has positioned Hoyt as the functional owner for that work in the appointment release. Readers interested in the commercial and supplier implications should consult our /b2b coverage.

Quotations and company comment

Light & Wonder’s corporate statement read: “We’re excited to welcome Aimee Hoyt to Light & Wonder as our new chief people officer. Aimee’s leadership and expertise in people and culture will help drive our next chapter of growth.”

Hoyt’s public remarks focused on returning to Las Vegas, working with creators of games and experiences, and on the people who bring those games to life:

“It truly is all about the games and the people who bring them to life.”

Recruitment partner mentioned in announcement

The announcement referenced Arnold Ash as EGR’s executive recruitment partner. Arnold Ash provides executive search support to organisations seeking senior industry talent; the appointment notice listed the firm as part of the executive recruitment process.

Immediate implications for operators and vendors

Operators that license titles from Light & Wonder and platform vendors that integrate the supplier’s content will now see a senior people executive based in Las Vegas focused on internal talent and post-deal integration. The appointment formalises a single reporting line for culture and M&A-related people matters at Light & Wonder—information likely to matter for compliance, commercial negotiations and supplier-side integration projects.

Light & Wonder’s public materials do not include compensation details or a timetable for any restructuring under Hoyt’s remit. The company has positioned the hire as a culture and growth play tied to the business’s commercial performance in the US and globally.

What we know and what remains private

Confirmed facts: Hoyt’s appointment date (13 October 2026), her Las Vegas base, previous roles at Palo Alto Networks (joined January 2024; stepped down January 2026; adviser until May 2026), almost five years at IGT between 2010 and 2015 as executive vice-president of HR, and prior positions at Rackspace and Illumina. Also confirmed: Roxane Lukas left Light & Wonder in September 2026 after joining in August 2022, and Light & Wonder cited top-10 slot rankings from the NA Slots Tracker.

Unstated items: the company did not publish terms of employment, reporting structure beneath the chief people officer, or any explicit M&A timetable. Those details remain internal to Light & Wonder unless disclosed in subsequent filings or announcements.