AWS and Prime Video hit as Amazon prepares new wave of layoffs
According to Reuters, Amazon plans an additional round of corporate job cuts next week, following an October reduction, as part of its strategy to eliminate 30,000 corporate positions. These layoffs, expected to be similar in scale to the previous round of approximately 14,000 jobs, could commence as early as Tuesday and will impact divisions including Amazon Web Services (AWS), retail, Prime Video, and human resources (People Experience and Technology).
The company previously reduced 14,000 corporate jobs in October. At that time, Amazon attributed the cuts internally to the transformative nature of artificial intelligence (AI) software. CEO Andy Jassy later stated during a third-quarter earnings call that the reductions were not primarily financially or AI-driven, but rather a response to company culture and bureaucracy, noting that “you end up with a lot more people than what you had before, and you end up with a lot more layers.”
Jassy had indicated in 2025 that AI-driven efficiencies would likely lead to a reduction in Amazon’s corporate workforce. The company showcased its latest AI models at its annual AWS cloud computing conference in December. The 30,000 total job cuts, which mark the largest layoff in Amazon’s three-decade history and follow a 2022 reduction of 27,000 jobs, represent nearly 10% of the firm’s corporate employees. Amazon employs 1.58 million people globally, with most staff working in fulfillment centers and warehouses. Employees affected in October remained on the payroll for 90 days, a period expiring Monday.