Amazon cuts jobs in AGI department while pouring $200 billion into AI infrastructure

Amazon's AGI department finds humans are optional

AI remains its biggest bet, Bezos brigade tells El Reg, even as another round of layoffs reaches the teams building it Amazon may be spending billions on AI, but that hasn't stopped it from cutting jobs inside the very organization building it. The megacorp confirmed to The Register on Thursday that it has eliminated an undisclosed number of roles across parts of its Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) biz, even as it insists AI remains a key priority. The cuts are the latest in a restructuring that has seen Amazon shed more than 30,000 employees since October - including 16,000 announced in January - while pouring cash into AI infrastructure, custom silicon, and foundation models, with $200 billion in capex projected for 2026. "We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most important things we're working on," an Amazon spokesperson told The Register. "This is a fast-moving space, and we're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts. "That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization, even as we continue to invest in the areas most important to our customers' future. We're committed to supporting impacted employees through their transition and we're grateful for their contributions," the spokesperson added. Amazon hasn't said how many people were affected or exactly which teams were hit. Employees posting publicly said the layoffs reached groups working on model customization and post-training, with some reporting cuts of around 10 percent. Reuters separately reported that the layoffs also affected teams led by AGI Data Services vice president Adeeb Shanaa and AGI Information vice president Vishal Sharma. The move lands less than a year after Amazon overhauled its AI leadership, with longtime executive Peter DeSantis taking charge of the AGI organization as the company moved to accelerate development of its Nova family of foundation models and broader generative AI strategy. If there's a contradiction in laying off AI workers while telling investors AI is the company's future, Amazon doesn't see one. Building the future, it seems, doesn't guarantee you'll be around to see it. ®

Amazon cuts jobs in its artificial general intelligence group

SAN FRANCISCO, July 22 (Reuters) - Amazon (AMZN.O), opens new tab on Wednesday cut jobs in its artificial general intelligence group, marking the latest in a series of smaller reductions across the company since a much larger one in January. Artificial general intelligence is a hypothetical AI system that surpasses human intelligence ⁠and can learn, grow and operate autonomously. Many of the top AI companies are working to develop similar systems, with the hope of deploying them to solve difficult problems. "We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most ⁠important things we're working on," said an Amazon spokesman following a Reuters inquiry. "We're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for ⁠customers, so we can move faster on what counts. That focus means some difficult decisions, including ⁠eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization." It could not immediately be learned ⁠how many were impacted Wednesday. Amazon cut 16,000 jobs across the company in January. Reporting by Greg Bensinger; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab * Suggested Topics: * World at Work Greg Bensinger Thomson Reuters Greg Bensinger joined Reuters as a technology correspondent in 2022 focusing on the world's largest technology companies. He was previously a member of The New York Times editorial board and a technology beat reporter for The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. He also worked for Bloomberg News writing about the auto and telecommunications industries. He studied English literature at The University of Virginia and graduate journalism at Columbia University. Greg lives in San Francisco with his wife and two children.

Amazon cuts some jobs in its artificial general intelligence unit

Amazon is laying off some employees in its unit focused on artificial general intelligence, the company confirmed Wednesday, as it continues to cut jobs while pouring money into AI. The company declined to disclose how many staffers were affected, or which parts of the AGI organization were exposed to the cuts. The AGI unit is focused on building AI models, and also includes groups working on silicon development and quantum computing initiatives. "This is a fast-moving space, and we're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts," an Amazon spokesperson told CNBC in a statement. "That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization, even as we continue to invest in the areas most important to our customers' future." Reuters first reported the layoffs. Amazon has been downsizing over the past several years following a pandemic hiring binge, and as it commits massive sums to building out AI infrastructure. The company has laid off more than 30,000 staffers since last October, and has continued to eliminate roles through smaller rounds in recent months. The AGI unit is a core part of Amazon's AI strategy as the company tries to keep pace with leaders OpenAI, Anthropic and Google. AGI generally refers to AI that can perform as well or better than humans on most tasks. In 2024, Amazon's AGI group released a set of foundation models, called Nova. The unit took on a more expansive focus last December when Amazon tapped longtime cloud executive Peter DeSantis to replace Rohit Prasad as the head of the group. In February, the company lost the head of its AGI lab, David Luan, who joined Amazon in 2024 through a so-called acquihire of his startup Adept. Amazon's spokesperson said the company has been building large AI models for several years and "it remains one of the most important things we're working on." DeSantis acknowledged in an interview with CNBC last month that Amazon's models "haven't been at the very frontier for the very largest, most demanding workloads." He said Amazon has been working to shore up its models further and it hopes to have one of the "most capable intelligent models out there." Amazon is scheduled to report second-quarter results next week. The company has forecast capital expenditures for the year of $200 billion, an increase of more than 50% from 2025, and is raising tens of billions of dollars in debt to help fund its AI buildout.

Amazon cuts jobs in AGI group as it puts more focus on customer-facing AI

Amazon confirmed Wednesday that it laid off an unspecified number of employees in its artificial general intelligence (AGI) organization, the division working on the company's advanced AI models. The move, first reported by Reuters, comes as the company invests heavily in programs to help businesses implement AI effectively, including a $1 billion initiative to embed AWS engineers with customers building agentic AI systems. It's part of a larger shift in the industry as tech giants and AI frontier labs look to make sure the enormous sums they're spending on AI pay off in tools businesses actually use. In a statement, an Amazon spokesperson said building large AI models remains "one of the most important things we're working on," but said the company is also "sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts." "That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization, even as we continue to invest in the areas most important to our customers' future," the spokesperson said. It's the latest in a series of changes in Amazon's AGI group, which despite its name has always been focused more on frontier models than on what the industry considers AGI, the still-theoretical systems that would match or surpass human intelligence. Rohit Prasad, the senior executive who oversaw Amazon's AGI work, left the company late last year, and AGI Lab head David Luan departed in February. In December, Amazon folded the AGI group into a larger organization led by senior vice president Peter DeSantis that also includes chip development and quantum computing. The cuts are the latest in a series of smaller reductions since January, when Amazon eliminated 16,000 jobs across the company. Amazon said U.S. employees whose jobs are cut will receive 90 days of pay and benefits, outplacement support and transitional health coverage, along with eligibility for severance.

Amazon cuts jobs in its artificial general intelligence group

Artificial general intelligence is a hypothetical AI system that surpasses human intelligence ⁠and can ⁠learn, grow and operate autonomously. Many of the top AI companies are working to develop similar systems, with the hope of deploying them to solve difficult problems. Amazon on Wednesday cut jobs in its artificial general intelligence group, marking the latest in a series of smaller reductions across the company since a much larger one in January. Artificial general intelligence is a hypothetical AI system that surpasses human intelligence ⁠and can ⁠learn, grow and operate autonomously. Many of the top AI companies are working to develop similar systems, with the hope of deploying them to solve difficult problems. "We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most important things we're working on," said ⁠an Amazon spokesman following a Reuters inquiry. "We're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, ⁠so we can move faster on what counts. That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization." Rohit Prasad, a top Amazon executive overseeing AGI, left the company at the end of last year and the head of its AGI Lab, David Luan, left in February. AGI work was consolidated under senior vice president Peter DeSantis in December as part of a larger group that also ⁠includes silicon development and quantum computing. Employees under Adeeb Shanaa, vice president of artificial general intelligence data services, and Vishal Sharma, vice president of AGI information, reported being impacted by the cuts on online forums on Wednesday. However, the full scope of the cuts could not immediately be learned. Amazon cut 16,000 jobs across the company in January.

Amazon Confirms AGI Layoffs Ahead Of Q2 Earnings Report

'We're grateful for the contributions of every impacted employee,' an Amazon spokesperson says. Amazon has confirmed to CRN that it is "eliminating some roles" within its division for artificial general intelligence -- a theoretical AI that understands, learns and applies knowledge just like a human -- days ahead of when the company reports earnings for its second fiscal quarter. "We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most important things we're working on," a spokesperson for the Seattle-based technology giant said in an email to CRN on Wednesday. "This is a fast-moving space, and we're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts. That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization, even as we continue to invest in the areas most important to our customers' future." Amazon did not disclose how many employees were affected. The spokesperson added that Amazon is "committed to supporting impacted employees through their transition," with U.S. employees receiving "pay and benefits for 90 days, outplacement job search support, access to transitional health benefits, and be eligible for a severance payment. We're grateful for the contributions of every impacted employee." [RELATED: Intel Confirms Data Center Group Layoffs Ahead Of Q2 Results] Amazon Confirms Artificial General Intelligence Workforce Cuts Ted Stuart, president and chief operating officer of Amazon Web Services-focused cloud services provider Mission Cloud, which is part of CDW, recently told CRN in an interview that his company is investing in AI-focused products including AIM, or AI with Mission, a spin on the AI Roadmap Prioritization (AIR) Workshop from AWS, and Five-by-Five-by-Five, based on Amazon Quick. "We also offer a fixed-fee chatbot and an agentic POC (proof of concept)," Stuart said. "Then, depending on what's important to the customer and what their use cases are, we'll go from there." Multiple AWS partners have looked at ways to combine that practice with one dedicated to an AI upstart such as Anthropic. BizCloud Experts President Sepehr Noorizadeh told CRN in a recent interview that, for example, BizCloud leveraged both companies' technology to improve how a client handled customer quotes and invoice scheduling. "What we've done is look at how can we collaborate with the AWS team and the Anthropic team to actually find the purpose-fit model for them (customers), and provide that feedback loop back to Anthropic and to the AWS team on what we're seeing in the front line for customers," BizCloud Experts President Sepehr Noorizadeh told CRN in a recent interview. Although Amazon has continued to invest in AI and new AI capabilities across its product stack that can appeal to businesses in the short term, AGI remains a more far-flung version of the technology. Industry timelines for AGI range from 2027 to 2040 and beyond. AGI-related executives who have left the company in recent months include David Luan, the former vice president and head of Amazon's AGI Lab and agentic AI research and development (R&D). Amazon reports its next quarterly earnings on July 30, covering the three months ended June 30. The vendor has been cutting tens of thousands of employees as it prioritizes AI investments and following massive hiring increases industrywide during the global pandemic. Other layoffs conducted and announced so far this year include Intel's Data Center Group, Cisco cutting thousands of jobs, NetApp permanently letting go of 77 employees from around its San Jose, Calif., headquarters, and Cognizant's plans to spend upward of $270 million on employee severance and other personnel-related costs as part of layoffs under its "Project Leap" initiative to become more agile and enable an artificial intelligence-enabled operating model.

Amazon Trims AGI Team to Focus on Core Initiatives | PYMNTS.com

The move follows Amazon's consolidation of AGI work into part of a larger group that also includes silicon development and quantum computing in December 2025, the departure of AGI-focused executive Rohit Prasad at the end of 2025, and the departure of AGI lab leader David Luan in February, according to the report. It's also one of a series of smaller workforce reductions Amazon has made since a much bigger round of layoffs in January, the report said. Employees reported being impacted by the cuts in the AGI group in posts on online forums Wednesday, but the scope of the cuts is not clear, per the report. Asked about the reports by Reuters, an Amazon spokesperson said: "We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most important things we're working on. We're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts. That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization." Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announced in a Dec. 17, 2025 message that the AGI team was being included in a newly formed organization that brought together the company's AI models, silicon development and quantum computing, and is led by Peter DeSantis. Jassy also said in the message that Prasad, who led the creation of the AGI organization over the previous two years, had decided to leave Amazon. "The path ahead is full of opportunity," Jassy said in the message. "With the foundation that's been built, the traction we're seeing, and Peter's leadership bringing unified focus to these technologies, we're well-positioned to lead and deliver meaningful capabilities for our customers. I'm excited about what this team will build and how these foundational technologies will help shape Amazon's future." AGI refers to the development of intelligent machines that can think, learn and perform any intellectual task that a human can, PYMNTS reported in April 2024. Unlike AI systems that are designed to excel at specific tasks, AGI aims to create machines that can think and reason like humans, adapt to new challenges and learn from experience.

Amazon Cuts Jobs in AGI Division, Doubles Down on Core AI Projects

Amazon has laid off employees in parts of its Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) division as it reshapes its AI teams to focus on projects with the biggest customer impact. The move is the latest in a series of smaller job cuts across the company since Amazon eliminated 16,000 roles in January as part of a wider restructuring. The company has not disclosed how many employees were affected by the latest round of layoffs. "We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most important things we're working on," an Amazon spokesperson said, adding, "We're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter the most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts. That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization."

Amazon cuts jobs in artificial general intelligence unit By Investing.com

Investing.com -- Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) has laid off some of its workforce in the artificial general intelligence division on Wednesday, continuing a pattern of smaller workforce reductions following a larger elimination in January. The company removed positions from its AGI group, which focuses on developing AI systems designed to surpass human intelligence and operate independently. Multiple leading AI companies are pursuing similar technology aimed at solving complex problems. An Amazon spokesman confirmed the decision after an inquiry. We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most important things we're working on. This is a fast-moving space, and we're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts," spokesman said. "That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization, even as we continue to invest in the areas most important to our customers' future. We're committed to supporting impacted employees through their transition and we're grateful for their contributions," he added. The company did not disclose the number of employees affected by Wednesday's reduction. Amazon eliminated 16,000 positions across the company in January.

Amazon Cuts Jobs in Artificial General Intelligence Unit

Amazon.com cut jobs in parts of its artificial general intelligence organization, the latest targeted workforce reduction at a major technology company as the industry continues to pour billions of dollars into artificial intelligence. The company didn't disclose how many employees were affected. "We've been building large AI models for several years, and it remains one of the most important things we're working on," an Amazon spokesperson said. "This is a fast-moving space, and we're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts." The spokesperson said the increased focus led to "some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization," while the company continues investing in AI initiatives it considers most important for customers. Amazon has been racing to expand its AI offerings, developing its Nova family of foundation models and investing heavily in generative AI services for customers through Amazon Web Services, while also integrating AI features across its retail and devices businesses. The move comes as large technology companies continue reshaping their workforces while increasing spending on AI infrastructure. Amazon announced broad corporate layoffs affecting about 16,000 employees in January as Chief Executive Andy Jassy pushed to streamline the company while accelerating AI investments. Amazon said affected U.S. employees will receive 90 days of pay and benefits, outplacement support, transitional healthcare benefits and will be eligible for severance payments. The company said it remains committed to investing in artificial intelligence despite the cuts, describing the layoffs as part of an effort to prioritize the initiatives it believes will have the greatest impact for customers.

Amazon lays off employees in AGI division while investing billions in AI: Report

Some employees working on AI model customisation and post-training were among those who lost their jobs, as per LinkedIn posts. Amazon has reportedly laid off employees from its artificial general intelligence (AGI) division even as the company continues to spend heavily to expand its AI business. It is still unclear how many employees were affected or which parts of the AGI division saw layoffs. The AGI division is responsible for developing Amazon's AI models and also includes teams working on custom AI chips and quantum computing. Some employees working on AI model customisation and post-training were among those who lost their jobs, as per LinkedIn posts. Explaining the decision, an Amazon spokesperson told CNBC, "This is a fast-moving space, and we're sharpening our focus on the initiatives that matter most for customers, so we can move faster on what counts." "That focus means some difficult decisions, including eliminating some roles within parts of our AGI organization, even as we continue to invest in the areas most important to our customers' future." Also read: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, Z Fold 8, Z Flip 8, Watch Ultra 2 and Watch 9: India prices, pre-order benefits and more details Amazon has been reducing its workforce over the past few years after hiring heavily during the pandemic. Since October, the company has cut more than 30,000 jobs across different teams, reports CNBC. Smaller rounds of layoffs have also continued in recent months. Despite the layoffs, AI is one of Amazon's biggest priorities. The AGI division plays an important role in the company's efforts to compete with rivals such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Google. For those unaware, AGI refers to AI systems that can perform most tasks at a level similar to or better than humans. Amazon said its focus on AI has not changed. The spokesperson said that the company has been developing large AI models for years and "it remains one of the most important things we're working on." Also read: Google reportedly working on a new AI chip, here is how it may improve Gemini models Last month, Amazon's AGI lead Peter DeSantis admitted that the company's AI models "haven't been at the very frontier for the very largest, most demanding workloads." Amazon is expected to announce its second-quarter earnings next week. The company has already said it plans to spend about $200 billion this year on capital investments, with a major focus on expanding its AI infrastructure.