Seattle, January 28, 2026, 04:03 PST
- Amazon says the latest round of cuts will impact roughly 16,000 roles across the company
- The move comes after 14,000 white-collar job cuts in October, part of the firm’s effort to reshape teams and reduce layers.
- Amazon is cutting jobs as it ramps up AI integration and gears up to release quarterly earnings next week
Amazon announced Wednesday it is slashing roughly 16,000 jobs, expanding its latest wave of layoffs at the retail and cloud giant.
These cuts move Amazon nearer to its wider goal of slashing roughly 30,000 corporate jobs, following a post-pandemic slowdown and a fresh drive from CEO Andy Jassy to flatten the hierarchy and accelerate decision-making.
The timing is crucial as companies ramp up their use of artificial intelligence, or AI—software that automates tasks such as drafting text and writing code—while simultaneously tightening their budgets. Amazon is also scheduled to release its quarterly earnings next week.
Beth Galetti, Amazon’s senior vice president of People Experience and Technology, informed employees that the changes “will impact approximately 16,000 roles across Amazon,” following staggered completion of team restructurings. She added the company continues to hire in “strategic areas and functions” deemed essential to its future. 1
Galetti noted that most U.S.-based employees impacted by the changes will have 90 days to find another position within the company. Timing for employees outside the U.S. will depend on local regulations. Those who either don’t secure an internal role or opt out of trying will receive support such as severance, job placement assistance, and health benefits, she added.
The newest round is set to impact teams at Amazon Web Services (AWS), its cloud division, as well as units in retail, Prime Video, and human resources, Reuters reported last week. Inside Amazon, the HR department goes by People Experience and Technology.
Some disruption showed up a day early. An email from Colleen Aubrey, a senior VP at AWS, was sent to staff before the planned layoffs and referred to them as “Project Dawn,” Reuters reported. A team-wide meeting invite was then quickly pulled. “Changes like this are hard on everyone,” Aubrey wrote in the message Reuters reviewed. 2
Amazon links its latest restructuring to both pandemic-era over-hiring and the rising adoption of AI tools company-wide, including AI assistants handling routine office tasks. The company is also ramping up investments in warehouse robotics to speed up packaging and delivery, aiming to cut back on human labor, Reuters reported. 3
The cuts leave Amazon among the big tech players still adjusting headcounts following the COVID hiring surge. Meta and Microsoft are also trimming staff as they increase their investments in AI.
The impact on teams and countries won’t be uniform, and Amazon hasn’t provided specifics on which groups will face the biggest cuts. Galetti also hinted that adjustments at the team level could continue, though she insisted broad layoffs “every few months” aren’t planned.
In late October, Amazon cut roughly 14,000 white-collar positions. CEO Andy Jassy explained this move as a step to streamline operations by reducing layers of management and slashing bureaucracy.
Despite the announced cuts, the layoffs account for only a tiny fraction of Amazon’s workforce, which numbers about 1.58 million employees, the majority stationed in fulfillment centers and warehouses, Reuters reports.
