Persson publicly expressed his increasing discomfort with the pressures of owning such a large and successful game. He felt overwhelmed by the responsibilities and the need to maintain Minecraft's community expectations.

Persson tweeted a message expressing his desire to sell his share of Mojang. This sparked interest from various companies.

Microsoft announced its agreement to acquire Mojang AB, including Minecraft, for $2.5 billion USD. Persson, along with Carl Manneh and Jakob Porsér, left Mojang after the acquisition.