Amazon layoffs: Andy Jassy, the CEO of Amazon, in an annual letter sent to the company’s shareholders talked about the hard times the company went through in the past and how he is now sure that the recent steps to cut costs will help the platform grow. In his letter, which is published on Amazon website, the executive said that some of the changes, like laying off 27,000 workers, are hard, but will be good for the company in the long run.
He added that Amazon conducted a “deep look across the company, business by business”, to see whether “each initiative's long-term potential (will) drive enough revenue, operating income, free cash flow, and return on invested capital.”
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According to Jassy, the corporation terminated a telemedicine service and other experimental ventures. It also halted the expansion of its fresh stores and reduced warehouse expansion. He admitted that laying off 27,000 employees in numerous rounds is difficult, but all of these actions would help the company reduce overall costs.
This was the largest mass layoff in Amazon's history. Despite this, Jassy feels that Amazon's finest days are ahead of it. He went on to say that in order to cut expenses, Amazon has to close multiple physical stores, businesses, Amazon Fabric, and Amazon Care initiatives.
Jassy also informed shareholders that Amazon has requested that current employees have to return to the office because he believes that innovation occurs when people work together in person. The e-commerce behemoth has invited employees to work from the office beginning in May of this year, which is next month. People will be required to work from the office at least three days per week.
Amazon is interested in AI
The CEO of the company said that a lot of money would be spent on AI tools that have become famous in recent months. The company is making its own Large Language Models (LLMs). According to Jassy, they have been developing their own LLMs for some time and are confident that they will enhance and revolutionise practically every consumer experience. He stated that the business would keep making significant investments in these models across all customer, seller, brand, and creator interactions.
