Eric Schmidt joined Google back in 2001, and, since then, he had filled an executive-level position with the company, and with the parent company Alphabet, ever since.

But today, Alphabet officially announced that Schmidt will be stepping down from his role as Executive Chairman. Instead, he will be transitioning into a “Technical Advisor” role, and he will also still be serving on Alphabet’s board from this point on.

“Since 2001, Eric has provided us with business and engineering expertise and a clear vision about the future of technology,” said Larry Page, CEO of Alphabet. “Continuing his 17 years of service to the company, he’ll now be helping us as a technical advisor on science and technology issues. I’m incredibly excited about the progress our companies are making, and about the strong leaders who are driving that innovation.”

Schmidt will be still “advising” folks at Alphabet in his new role. However, he will be taking more time to pursue other passions as well. As mentioned above, he will be focusing more on philanthropy moving forward, and taking on issues tied to science and technology.

“Larry, Sergey, Sundar and I all believe that the time is right in Alphabet’s evolution for this transition. The Alphabet structure is working well, and Google and the Other Bets are thriving,” said Eric Schmidt. “In recent years, I’ve been spending a lot of my time on science and technology issues, and philanthropy, and I plan to expand that work.”

The announcement was made today, and is effective beginning in January of 2018.