• Amazon is moving ahead with 2025 layoffs affecting 14,000 workers as it invests in AI.
• Google and Microsoft ramp up AI investments.

Amazon plans to cut around 14,000 corporate roles as the company shifts more money toward AI and looks for savings in other areas. The move reflects how Amazon is trying to balance long-term investment with short-term spending pressures.

As reported by AP News, employees affected by the reduction will be notified on Tuesday. In a letter sent to staff, Beth Galetti, senior vice president of people experience and technology at the company said most workers will have 90 days to search for a new job inside the company. Those who do not move into another position, or choose not to try, will receive support that includes severance pay, health coverage, and help finding new work. The company said it aims to make the transition as orderly as possible for those affected.

Amazon employs about 350,000 corporate workers, and roughly 1.56 million people overall. The latest change trims about 4% of its corporate staff. While the reduction is not the largest the company has faced, it signals how Amazon is responding to rising costs, a competitive AI market, and shifting priorities. The cut follows months of conversations in teams about how new technology may replace certain tasks rather than grow the number of employees who handle them.

Chief Executive Andy Jassy has pushed to reduce expenses since taking over in 2021. In June, he said he expected generative AI to shrink Amazon’s corporate workforce over the coming years. He noted that the company already has more than 1,000 generative AI services and applications built or underway, but described that number as only a small start. Jassy has framed this transition as an attempt to match the work employees do with new tools that can automate parts of their jobs.

Amazon plans to spend $10 billion on a new campus in North Carolina to support cloud and AI systems. Since the beginning of 2024, the company has committed about the same amount to data centre projects in Mississippi, Indiana, Ohio, and North Carolina. The company is racing to grow its infrastructure as competitors like OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Meta increase their own investments. Spending in these areas may reshape where Amazon focuses its talent and internal resources.

On a conference call with analysts in May, Jassy described the potential for AWS as “massive” and said the company would continue to invest heavily. He pointed to the new Alexa+, as well as hundreds of internal AI projects, as part of that push. He has argued that customer demand will rise as AI becomes part of everyday services, and Amazon plans to be ready for that shift.

Amazon’s headcount surged during the pandemic as online shopping increased. In the years since, many large tech and retail companies cut staff as spending cooled. The latest cuts raise the possibility that Amazon is still adjusting its size. It is the largest round since 2023, when the company eliminated 27,000 roles in several months. Amazon has not indicated whether more reductions are planned. Some employees worry this will become a yearly cycle rather than a single course correction.

Meanwhile, the US job market shows early signs of strain. Hiring has slowed, even though layoffs remain limited. Federal labour data is paused during the government shutdown, but payroll firm ADP recently reported a loss of 32,000 private sector jobs in September. Many retailers are cautious with seasonal hiring due to concerns about the economy and tariffs. Amazon, however, says it will bring on 250,000 seasonal workers, matching last year’s level. Seasonal hiring offers Amazon flexibility without committing to long-term roles.

Neil Saunders, managing director at GlobalData, said in a statement that the move reflects a broad cleanup of Amazon’s corporate team. He argued that the company remains in a strong position with room to grow in the US and abroad, but warned that Amazon still faces higher costs and tighter markets. He said the company must protect its profits as investments in logistics and AI rise. “In some ways, this is a tipping point away from human capital to technological infrastructure,” he said.

Amazon will report quarterly earnings on Thursday. In its last quarter, AWS posted 17.5% growth, and analysts will watch how that trend shapes future cuts.

Andy Prendergast, GMB National Secretary, criticised the cuts. “Amazon cutting jobs while registering astronomical profits shows everything that’s wrong with the business. Bezos can spend billions launching celebrities into space and takeover Venice for his wedding, but he can’t treat his loyal workforce with dignity. We will be supporting our members in Amazon as they face this uncertain future.”

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