Amazon CEO tells employees to be prepared for AI takeover

Amazon, like other big companies, has been investing heavily into AI. From Alexa+ to AI shopping assistants to AWS for developers, Amazon is integrating AI tools to optimize workflows and stay in competition with other big players. But that comes with consequences for human employees and the CEO has already made it clear that some jobs will be taken over by AI agents.

In a memo to Amazon employees, CEO Andy Jassy shared his thoughts on generative AI and what it means for the future of the company. Talking about the different integrations, Jassy mentioned that this will change the way work is being done today. “As we roll out more Generative AI and agents, it should change the way our work is done. We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs.”

He goes on to state that in the next few years, the total corporate workforce will reduce as AI tools and features are incorporated “extensively” at Amazon. While there is no timeline on when these layoffs will take place and what departments will be affected, the CEO advices employees to educate themselves and experiment with AI when they can. “Those who embrace this change, become conversant in AI, help us build and improve our AI capabilities internally and deliver for customers, will be well-positioned to have high impact and help us reinvent the company,” he adds.

Amazon is looking to replace a portion of its human workflow with generative AI and AI agents that can be called upon when needed. It is getting started towards its ultimate goal of fully optimizing workflows using AI and as of now, has over 1,000 generative AI services and applications underway.