Amazon to Lay Off 30,000 Corporate Workers amid AI Efficiency Push

Amazon is reportedly preparing to eliminate up to 30,000 corporate positions starting Tuesday, as part of a strategic effort to curb expenses and balance the effects of overhiring during the pandemic surge. According to sources familiar with the development, this reduction marks one of the company’s most substantial workforce cuts since late 2022, when nearly 27,000 jobs were axed.

Although the planned layoffs represent a small portion of Amazon’s 1.55 million total employees, they account for almost 10% of its 350,000 corporate workforce. The company has been implementing smaller job cuts across various departments over the past two years, including devices, communications, and podcasting. The new layoffs are expected to affect divisions such as human resources (known internally as People Experience and Technology or PXT), operations, devices and services, and Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Managers of the impacted teams were instructed on Monday to attend training sessions on how to communicate the changes to employees, as email notifications will begin rolling out on Tuesday morning. An Amazon spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.

CEO Andy Jassy is spearheading an extensive streamlining initiative aimed at dismantling bureaucratic redundancies by reducing managerial layers. Earlier this year, he launched an anonymous complaint line to pinpoint inefficiencies, receiving over 1,500 submissions and implementing more than 450 procedural refinements.

Jassy has also indicated that the growing integration of artificial intelligence tools within Amazon could result in additional layoffs, primarily through automation of repetitive tasks.“This latest move signals that Amazon is likely realizing enough AI-driven productivity gains within corporate teams to support a substantial reduction in force,” said Sky Canaves, an eMarketer analyst. “Amazon has also been under pressure in the short term to offset long-term investments in building out its AI infrastructure.”

While the total extent of this job cut remains uncertain, sources suggested that the number may fluctuate depending on shifting financial priorities. Reports indicate that the human resources unit could see a reduction of up to 15%.

A stringent return-to-office policy requiring employees to be on-site five days a week has also contributed to attrition, as those failing to comply are being marked as voluntarily resigned, saving Amazon severance costs.

Meanwhile, Layoffs.fyi data shows that around 98,000 tech jobs have been lost this year across 216 firms.

Amazon’s cloud unit, AWS, recorded second-quarter sales of $30.9 billion—up 17.5%, yet trailing Microsoft Azure’s 39% and Google Cloud’s 32% growth. Despite this, the company anticipates a strong holiday season with plans to hire 250,000 seasonal workers.