Amazon CEO Andy Jassy Warns Employees: AI to Shrink Corporate Workforce in Coming Years
SEATTLE, WA – June 18, 2025 – Amazon CEO Andy Jassy has delivered a stark message to the company’s vast global workforce: the accelerating integration of artificial intelligence, particularly generative AI, is poised to lead to a significant reduction in its corporate headcount over the next few years. In an internal memo made public today, Jassy emphasized that while AI will create new opportunities, it will inevitably make some existing roles redundant due to efficiency gains.
Describing generative AI as a “once-in-a-lifetime technology” comparable to the advent of the internet, Jassy outlined Amazon’s expansive investments in this transformative field. He revealed that the company already has “over 1,000 Generative AI services and applications in progress or built” and plans to “lean in further in the coming months.” This aggressive adoption, he stated, is designed to reshape how Amazon operates “in virtually every corner of the company,” from enhancing the Alexa personal assistant and improving customer service chatbots to optimizing fulfillment networks and aiding advertisers.
“As we roll out more Generative AI and agents, it should change the way our work is done,” Jassy wrote in the memo. “We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs.” While he acknowledged the difficulty in predicting the exact “net outcome” over time, the clear implication is a leaner corporate workforce as AI drives efficiency.
This announcement follows a period of significant workforce adjustments at Amazon, with tens of thousands of employees having been laid off since 2022. While no specific numbers or departments for future cuts were detailed in Jassy’s latest communication, industry analysts interpret his remarks as a clear signal that white-collar positions are most susceptible to AI-driven automation.
Jassy also highlighted the emerging importance of “AI agents”—software systems capable of performing complex tasks on behalf of users. He predicted “billions of these agents, across every company and in every imaginable field,” suggesting that these intelligent systems will become powerful “teammates” that allow human employees to focus less on “rote work” and more on strategic innovation and customer experience.
Crucially, the Amazon chief urged employees to actively embrace this technological shift. He advised them to “be curious about AI, educate yourself, attend workshops and take trainings, use and experiment with AI whenever you can.” Jassy asserted that those who adapt and become “conversant in AI” will be “well-positioned to have high impact and help us reinvent the company.”
The message underscores Amazon’s commitment to operating “like the world’s largest start-up—customer-obsessed, inventive, fast-moving, lean, scrappy.” As AI continues to rapidly evolve, Jassy’s warning serves as a call to action for Amazon employees to upskill and innovate, ensuring their relevance in an increasingly AI-powered future.