Amazon Eliminates Hundreds of Cloud Computing Jobs

Amazon has reportedly cut hundreds of jobs in its Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud division.

Those cuts happened Thursday (July 17), Reuters reported, citing two sources. A spokesperson for Amazon confirmed the cuts in a statement to PYMNTS.

“After a thorough review of our organization, our priorities, and what we need to focus on going forward, we’ve made the difficult business decision to eliminate some roles across particular teams in AWS,” the statement said.

“We didn’t make these decisions lightly, and we’re committed to supporting the employees throughout their transition. These decisions are necessary as we continue to invest, hire and optimize resources to deliver innovation for our customers.”

The company also pointed out that it is continuing to hire in other areas, including within AWS. While the Reuters report notes that the layoffs came one month after Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said that artificial intelligence AI would lead to job cuts, the company insisted to PYMNTS that these cuts were not related to AI, but rather the results of a review on areas that could be streamlined.

Several workers told Reuters they had gotten emails on Thursday morning that notified them they had been let go and their computers were being deactivated.

Reuters said it could not determine the full scope of the layoffs but added at least one group, known as “specialists,” was impacted. These employees work with customers to help create new product ideas and sell existing services.

The report noted that the cuts put Amazon in the company of a growing list of tech giants, including Microsoft, Meta, and CrowdStrike to announce job cuts this year.

Jassy on June 17 had sent a message to employees telling them that workers who have learned to use AI will be better positioned to be a part of Amazon in the future. He added that the company’s corporate workforce is likely to shrink over the next few years as the company embraces AI, which he described as the most transformative technology to come along since the internet.

“Those who embrace this change, become conversant in AI, help us build and improve our AI capabilities internally and deliver for customers, will be well-positioned to have high impact and help us reinvent the company,” Jassy said in the message.

Other executives have offered starker warnings, like Ford CEO Jim Farley, who told the Aspen Ideas Festival that “artificial intelligence is going to replace literally half of all white-collar workers in the U.S.”

Research from PYMNTS Intelligence, as seen in the report “Workers Say Fears About GenAI Taking Their Jobs Is Overblown,” shows that 54% of workers said that generative AI posed a “significant risk of widespread job displacement.” The research also found that 38% were worried the technology could eventually bring about the elimination of their specific jobs.