2 top Facebook executives depart the company

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook says two of its top executives are leaving the company. Chief Product Officer Chris Cox and Chris Daniels, who heads messaging app WhatsApp, are departing. It isn't clear what future plans the executives have.

Cox was in charge of Facebook's apps including its flagship social media site, as well as Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger. He joined 13 years ago and helped create Facebook's News Feed feature.

Facebook will not appoint a direct replacement for Cox. Longtime Facebook executive Will Cathcart will head up WhatsApp.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg reiterated that the company is organizing around a "privacy-focused" emphasis on private messaging, which he announced last week.

Founding executives of Facebook-owned Instagram and WhatsApp have also recently left the company.