Amazon has reportedly cut an undisclosed number of jobs in its Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud computing unit.
The AWS layoffs were announced just one month after CEO Andy Jassy’s warning that the adoption of generative AI would trigger a workforce reduction.
Which AWS employees were impacted
The layoffs across multiple AWS teams could impact hundreds of employees, according to Reuters. Reports indicate the layoffs impacted several groups within AWS, with anonymous sources claiming that most layoffs impacted employees in marketing and outreach roles. Affected groups also seem to include “specialists” who work alongside customers to aid in creating new product ideas and selling existing services.
Several employees reported receiving emails on Thursday informing them that they had been terminated.
It seems an email from company spokesperson Brad Glasser indicated that layoffs will impact Amazon Web Services teams, stating, “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.”
AI adoption economics for AWS
AWS is Amazon’s most profitable sector, with AWS sales and operating income reporting $29.3 billion in revenue for the first quarter of 2025, a 17% increase compared to the same quarter a year earlier. Meanwhile, its operating income rose 23% to $11.5 billion in pretax profits.
Amazon joins many of today’s large corporations in applying widespread artificial intelligence to its operations, with a significant portion of its AI initiatives involving internal processes. As AI agents are capable of automating routine tasks and even writing code for software, some tech organizations are reducing their reliance on human workers and minimizing expenses traditionally associated with employing staff.
Earlier this year, Amazon announced plans to spend $100 billion in 2025 towards building out its AI infrastructure and expanding its delivery operations.
Replacing humans with AI agents may save employee operating costs; however, Amazon’s layoffs come as the company’s AI spending intensifies, as is necessary to support both its autonomous workforce objectives and its customer services. The firm has recently implemented several customer-focused AI-powered initiatives, including its shopping assistant Rufus, made widely available last September, and Alexa+, introduced earlier this year.
Impact of AI workplace efficiency on employees
Amazon employed 1.6 million full- and part-time workers globally as of the end of March 2025. However, the company has reportedly been implementing job cuts in several areas, including its devices and services unit, books, and the Wondery podcast division.
Amazon’s workforce activity reflects Jassy’s plans to use GenAI across the company’s internal operations to enhance efficiency. In a memo last month, Jassy warned of future layoffs following Amazon’s increased AI implementation, stating, “We expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce as we get efficiency gains from using AI extensively across the company.”
This AWS news follows that of many other tech giants, including Meta, Microsoft, and CrowdStrike, who have laid off employees this year, as more corporations integrate artificial intelligence into their operations. For example, Microsoft shared plans to spend $80 billion during its 2025 fiscal year and laid off 15,000 workers between May and June.
During this week’s AWS Summit, AI was a key topic of focus.
