Nilay Patel, the well-known and highly regarded managing editor of The Verge, which he founded with editor-in-chief Josh Topolsky, has left that high-profile job, according to several sources. But, in the move, he’s not leaving Vox Media, the well-funded company that owns the popular tech news and reviews site and others.

Instead, sources said, Patel will become acting managing editor of the new effort by former Washington Post blogger Ezra Klein, which has been called “Project X,” but apparently will now be called Vox.com. It is the latest expansion of Vox Media — which also owns the SB Nation sports site, the Polygon gaming site and others — and is expected to launch this spring (as in soon).

The job at the Klein endeavor, though, is only temporary for Patel. Sources said he will later move on to work on the site related to Vox Media’s purchase last November of the Curbed Network of sites that focus on real estate and restaurants, with its founder Lockhart Steele. Those include Curbed, Racked and Eater, which will be relaunched on Vox’s publishing platform.

While it’s not clear what caused the departure from the tech site Patel was so strongly associated with, sources said there was some amount of tension with Topolsky, with whom he also worked at AOL-owned Engadget, while others said the job had shifted. Regardless, the sudden change surprised many of the Verge staff after it took place, only weeks ago. Patel is still listed on the site as managing editor, though he is no longer in that role.

Patel and Topolsky have worked together a long time. They and others left Engadget to start The Verge in 2011.

No comments all around.

But, to give you an idea of what’s up next for Patel, here’s a slickster video that Vox.com has up about itself and what it’s going to do — make us love our spinach, that’s what!. (Note to self: Why didn’t we do a slickster video about our sugar-addled efforts here? Dang.):