Astronomer HR Involved In Coldplay Fiasco Is Part One Of Boston's Elite Families

Kristin Cabot, the chief people's officer of Astronomer, who is in the eye of a storm over a "scandalous" moment with the company CEO at a Coldplay concert, was married into one of New England's most storied and affluent families.

Andrew Cabot, is the sixth-generation heir to the Privateer Rum fortune and a direct descendant of the original Andrew Cabot, anchoring her to the lineage of one of the original "Boston Brahmin" families whose influence stretches back over two centuries.

Property records show the couple purchased a $2.2 million home on the New Hampshire coast earlier this year. Her now-deleted LinkedIn account also listed her as an advisory board member at Privateer Rum since September 2020.

Andrew Cabot's heritage ties him to a rarefied circle of old-money, Anglo-American elites who have historically dominated New England's social and economic life. The Cabots are part of a class so insular that, for decades, even the Kennedys were considered outsiders.

Their business ventures spanned shipping, carbon black manufacturing (a critical component in tire production), and various other enterprises across the region.

A 1972 New York Times profile estimated the Cabot family's fortune at $200 million, roughly $15.4 billion when adjusted for inflation in 2025. The family patriarch, Samuel Cabot, significantly grew the family's wealth through marriage to Eliza Perkins, the daughter of a prominent merchant trader.

As a local Boston poem goes, "Where the Lowells talk only to Cabots/ And the Cabots talk only to God."

The family's wealth was partly built on controversial 19th-century trade practices, including involvement in the slave and opium trades. The Cabots have also made significant philanthropic contributions to institutions like Harvard University, MIT, Norwich University, and the Perkins School for the Blind.

Ms Cabot was previously married to Kenneth C Thornby. According to reports, she filed for divorce in 2018, and the marriage was officially dissolved in 2022.

Ms Cabot is currently on leave from her position at Astronomer, following the viral video that captured her and former CEO Andy Byron in an intimate moment during Coldplay's performance at Gillette Stadium last week.

The footage, on the stadium Jumbotron, caught Mr Byron standing behind Ms Cabot with his arms around her waist. Both appeared startled, seeing themselves on the giant screen. Mr Byron quickly turned away, while Ms Cabot attempted to shield her face. The incident led to Mr Byron's wife, Megan Kerrigan, removing her surname from her Facebook profile shortly afterwards.