Amazon plans new round of job cuts as IMF chief warns of AI ‘tsunami’
Amazon prepares a new round of job cuts amid growing use of automation across corporate roles, following a round of redundancies just months ago.
The move comes as the head of the International Monetary Fund warned that AI is set to hit the global labour market like a “tsunami”.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva said the firm’s research shows that 60 per cent of jobs in advanced economies will be affected by AI in the coming years, alongside 40 per cent globally.
Roles will be “enhanced, eliminated or transformed” she said. While workers whose jobs are enhanced tend to earn more and spend more in their local economies, entry-level positions and younger roles are the most at risk.
Her warning comes as Amazon is reported to be preparing a second wave of corporate job cuts next week, as part of a broader plan to trim around 30,000 roles.
Amazon overhaul sharpens focus on AI side effects
The cuts could begin as soon as Tuesday and are expected to be similar in scale to the 14,000 white-collar jobs Amazon cut in October, according to reports.
Roles across Amazon Web Services (AWS), retail, Prime Video and the company’s human resources division are expected to be affected, though the final scope remains unclear.
Amazon has declined to comment.
The October round of layoffs was initially linked to the rapid rise of AI, with the tech heavyweight telling staff that the current generation of AI is the most transformative tech since the internet.
But chief executive Andy Jassy later told analysts the cuts were driven more by company culture and excessive layers of management than by AI or financial pressures.
Nevertheless, Jassy has previously said he expects Amazon’s corporate workforce to shrink over time as AI-driven efficiencies increase.
Companies across the economy are increasingly using AI to write software code and automate routine tasks as they seek to cut costs and reduce reliance on staff.
If completed, the full 30,000 job reductions would represent nearly 10 per cent of Amazon’s corporate workforce, though only a small share of its total 1.58 million employees worldwide.
It would mark the largest round of layoffs in Amazon’s history, surpassing the roughly 27,000 roles cut in 2022.
For staff affected in October, a 90-day notice period expires on Monday, adding urgency to the timing of the next round of redundancies.