Ubisoft co-founder Claude Guillemot has passed away in a plane crash

Ubisoft co-founder Claude Guillemot has died at the age of 69 in a plane crash near La Baule in western France.

The details:

• As reported by Ouest France, Guillemot and a flight instructor were the only people on board the Cessna aircraft when it crashed into a field close to La Baule-Escoublac Airport, where an air show was due to take place that weekend, killing both.
• In a brief statement, Ubisoft said it was “deeply saddened” by the death of its co‑founder, offering condolences to his family and loved ones, adding that no further comments would be made at this time.
• Claude was one of five brothers, alongside Yves, Michel, Gérard, and Christian, who founded Ubisoft in 1986, which has grown into one of gaming’s biggest publishers, owning franchises such as Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, Just Dance, Rayman, Rainbow Six, and much more.
• While his brother Yves became the public‑facing CEO of the publisher, Claude spent much of his career on the operations and hardware side, serving as a senior executive at Ubisoft and as long‑time chair of Guillemot Corp., the family’s separate hardware business that owns brands such as Thrustmaster.