Did Amazon Cut 14,000 Jobs Because Of AI

Recently it was reported that Amazon was cutting 14,000 jobs. Now though this is nothing new with one of the largest e-commerce retailers, many were speculating that the job cuts were because of AI replacements.

Amazon Chief Executive Andy Jassy said the job cuts had nothing to do with money or AI but rather "culture" but what does he mean by that? Regardless of his explanation, it still has something to do with AI at some point.

AMAZON SAYS THEY NEED TO STAY "NIMBLE"

According to Amazon, their quarterly sales grew 13% year-on-year to $180 Billion Dollars. If you are still thinking that you shouldn't sign up to their affiliate "Associates" program because of their low commissions, think again.

Earning $180 BILLION quarterly is HUGE! No, Amazon is not hurting for money and these 14,000 job cuts are definitely not about money problems. Jassy said that the company is making the cuts to stay "nimble" and lean.

During the years of Covid and shortly afterwards, Amazon added many employees to handle the increased sales. However, many of these added employees were not all delivery drivers but rather administrative employees.

Not long ago I blogged about Why Affiliate Marketing & WA Keeps Growing and I showed you how big of an influence Amazon has in this NY & NJ area. Though I focused on just this area, they are like this everywhere.

Almost every mega-sized Amazon distribution center I pass on a daily basis will have only a dozen employee cars parked outside. Why? These distribution centers are mostly automated and do not need many workers.

AMAZON ISN'T HURTING FOR MONEY, THEY'RE JUST OVER EMPLOYED

So these 14,000 job cuts Amazon is implementing are most likely going to be in administrative and management areas. When Amazon ramped up employees just after Covid, it was necessary for that time. Andy Jassy said...

"You end up with a lot more people than what you had before, and you end up with a lot more layers … sometimes without realizing it, you can weaken the ownership of the people that you have who are doing the actual work."

In layman's terminology, Amazon is cutting the fat, cutting job layers they deem are not essential anymore and can be replaced down the road when Artificial Intelligence becomes more efficient. That should be no surprise.

This statement by Andy Jassy makes it clear. "We are committed to operating like the world’s largest startup, and … that means removing layers." These 14,000 job cuts have nothing to do with money, but AI will replace some.

If you don't consider Amazon as an affiliate program to join, even if their commissions are really low, just know that they will continue to grow and AI will make things more efficient for everyone. What do you think?