Replacing workers with AI: Amazon announces job cuts

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy recently stated that the increasing use of generative AI and automated agents in the corporate structure is likely to lead to a decline in office jobs. This trend is expected to affect white-collar jobs in particular, namely administrative, analytical and development roles within the company. A study by Microsoft also confirms that knowledge workers are particularly affected by this trend.

Generative AI reduces staffing requirements

Andy Jassy explained on Amazon:

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.

No concrete figures

Although the CEO didn't provide any specific figures, he expects Amazon's corporate workforce to shrink in the coming years. This is due to the increasing company-wide use of generative AI and automated agents, which are intended to make internal processes more efficient and partially take over tasks that were performed manually.

It’s hard to know exactly where this nets out over time, but in the next few years, we expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce as we get efficiency gains from using AI extensively across the company.

Over 1,000 AI projects and a growing level of automation

According to Retail Dive, Amazon is currently developing over 1,000 internal AI applications, including generative text models and agents designed to automate tasks such as text summarization, software generation and customer queries. A significant portion of Amazon's source code is already being created with the help of AI.

Since 2022, Amazon has cut over 27,000 jobs, mainly at its headquarters. Jassy's current announcement is thus part of a longer-term structural change characterized by cost pressures, new market conditions and technological developments.

Debate about AI and job losses

Amazon is not alone in this strategy. According to PYMNTS, executives at other large companies – such as Ford and JPMorgan – also predict a massive decline in office jobs due to AI by 2027. Former Google manager Mo Gawdat has even warned Business Insider of a structural crisis from 2027 onwards if society does not prepare for AI-induced job losses.