Amazon plans up to 30,000 corporate job cuts as AI automation expands
Amazon is preparing to eliminate up to 30,000 corporate jobs as it leans on AI and automation.
Beginning Tuesday, Amazon plans to cut up to 30,000 corporate roles, nearly 10% of its white-collar workforce, to reduce costs after pandemic over-hiring.
Cuts may hit human resources, operations, devices and services, and Amazon Web Services. According to people familiar with the policy, the company has also tightened office-attendance rules; employees who are not swiping in daily have been told they are considered to have resigned without severance.
Analysts say AI-driven productivity gains and the need to fund long-term AI infrastructure are key factors behind the reductions in staff. Executives have indicated that greater use of automation and AI to handle routine tasks will drive further reductions.
Internal planning papers reported in US media suggest the company could avoid hiring more than 500,000 US workers by 2033, yielding around $12.6 billion in savings between 2025 and 2027.
The scale and timing of the layoffs could change as financial priorities evolve. Separately, Amazon still expects a busy holiday period and plans to hire 250,000 seasonal workers for warehouses and fulfilment roles unrelated to the corporate cuts.
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