Amazon’s recent announcement of over 14,000 layoffs has impacted nearly every segment of the company’s extensive operations, encompassing cloud computing, devices, advertising, retail, and grocery stores. However, one job category experienced a disproportionate share of reductions: engineers. Documents submitted in New York, California, New Jersey, and Amazon’s home state of Washington indicated that close to 40% of the over 4,700 job reductions in those states were positions in engineering. The information was disclosed by Amazon in Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN, filings submitted to state agencies. The data reflects a portion of the overall layoffs disclosed in October. The availability of data was not uniform due to the varying reporting requirements of state WARN regulations. In revealing the most significant reductions in its 31-year history, Amazon aligned itself with an increasing number of technology firms that have implemented job cuts this year, despite the accumulation of cash reserves and rising profits. According to Layoffs.fyi, nearly 113,000 job cuts have occurred across 231 tech companies, reflecting a persistent trend that commenced in 2022 as firms recalibrated to the post-Covid economic landscape.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy has embarked on a multiyear initiative aimed at reshaping the company’s corporate culture to function as what he describes as “the world’s largest startup.” He has sought to streamline Amazon’s operations and reduce bureaucracy by encouraging employees to achieve more with fewer resources and eliminating unnecessary organizational layers. Amazon is anticipated to implement additional job cuts in January, as previously reported. Andy Jassy, chief executive officer of Amazon.com Inc., addresses attendees at an unveiling event in New York, US, on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. Amazon has revitalized Alexa through the integration of artificial intelligence, representing the most significant transformation of the voice-activated assistant since its launch more than ten years ago. The company announced that it is reallocating resources to increase its investment in artificial intelligence. The technology is set to transform Amazon’s white-collar workforce, with Jassy forecasting in June that the corporate headcount will decline in the years ahead, driven by efficiency improvements from AI.

In her memo regarding the layoffs, Human Resources Chief Beth Galetti emphasized the necessity of innovation, a pursuit the company must now undertake with a reduced workforce, particularly among engineers. “This generation of AI is the most transformative technology we’ve seen since the Internet, and it’s enabling companies to innovate much faster than ever before,” Galetti stated. “We are convinced that a more streamlined organization, characterized by fewer layers and increased ownership, is essential for us to respond swiftly to the needs of our customers and the demands of our business.” Amazon stated that AI is not the primary factor contributing to the majority of job reductions, emphasizing that the overarching objective is to streamline operations and prioritize efficiency. Jassy stated during Amazon’s earnings call last month that the reductions were a reaction to a “culture” issue within the organization, partly triggered by an extended hiring spree that resulted in “a lot more layers” and a deceleration in decision-making. The WARN filings indicate that the layoffs affected a range of software engineer levels, with a notable disproportionate impact on SDE II roles, which represent mid-level employees. The rise of AI is increasingly complicating the landscape for software development employment, as firms integrate coding assistants and various vibe coding platforms from providers such as Cursor, OpenAI, and Cognition. Amazon has introduced a new competitor known as Kiro. Over 500 product managers and program managers were removed during the layoffs, according to records from states with WARN notices, accounting for more than 10% of the total workforce. The filings indicate that senior manager and principal level positions were also included in the reductions. In the context of a comprehensive strategy to reduce expenditures, Amazon has aimed in recent years to limit investments in certain experimental or unprofitable ventures within the company.

It discontinued a telehealth service, a children’s video calling device, a fitness wearable, and multiple physical retail chains. Amazon’s video game division has been affected in the company’s most recent round of layoffs, as indicated by California WARN filings. Steve Boom, vice president of Audio, Twitch and Games, informed employees in a memo that “significant role reductions” would take place in its game studios located in San Diego and Irvine, California, as well as within its central publishing team. According to filings, game designers, artists, and producers constituted over a quarter of the total layoffs in Irvine, while they represented approximately 11% of the workforce reductions at Amazon’s San Diego offices. The company informed its employees that it is suspending a significant portion of its efforts in high-budget, or triple A, game development, particularly concerning massively multiplayer online, or MMO, games, as per reports. Amazon has introduced MMOs such as Crucible and New World. An MMO based on “Lord of the Rings” was also in development. In addition to its gaming division, Amazon has notably reduced its visual search and shopping teams, as indicated by various employee posts on LinkedIn. The unit oversees products such as Amazon Lens and Lens Live, which are AI shopping tools designed to assist users in locating products through real-time camera usage or images stored on their devices. In September, the company introduced Lens Live. The team was predominantly located in Palo Alto, California, and Amazon’s WARN filings reveal that software engineers, applied scientists, and quality assurance engineers experienced significant effects across its offices in that region. Amazon’s online advertising segment, a significant contributor to its profitability, experienced a reduction in scale. Over 140 positions in ad sales and marketing were removed from Amazon’s New York offices, representing approximately 20% of the total 760 roles eliminated, as per indications.