Amazon layoffs are back. Ecommerce giant has announced new job cuts. According to a report in Reuters, Amazon is cutting about 250 jobs in its devices and services unit after weeks of product rollouts including new Kindle e-readers and tablet computers. The company reportedly confirmed the job cuts after a Reuters inquiry. “We’ve made the difficult decision to eliminate a small number of roles,” a spokesperson said. The layoffs will help the company “operate more efficiently and better align with our product roadmap,” the statement added.According to the report, quoting a person familiar with the matter, the layoffs impact no more than 250 jobs, and are primarily in software development teams. As is the company’s custom, text messages and emails were sent to employees early Wednesday morning (October 28). A layoff email, reportedly seen by Reuters, was from Cherie Robinson, a human resources vice president in devices and services, saying that the company had undergone “a thorough review of our structure” resulting in the need for cuts.In January this year, Amazon announced that it is cutting 16,000 jobs across the company. This announcement came after the e-commerce company laid off 14,000 people in October. During January layoffs, senior VP of People Experience and Technology Beth Galetti told employees that these layoffs were made for “reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy.” She noted that the reason for the second round of massive layoffs within three months was that several teams in the company hadn’t finished their restructuring. “Some of you might ask if this is the beginning of a new rhythm – where we announce broad reductions every few months. That’s not our plan. But just as we always have, every team will continue to evaluate the ownership, speed, and capacity to invent for customers, and make adjustments as appropriate,” she said.
Amazon unveils new lineup of Alexa devices
Incidentally, the job cuts in the devices division came on the day Amazon unveiled five new Alexa-powered devices including a redesigned Echo Show 16 smart display and a photo frame with built-in Alexa. The new product launches come as Amazon pushes its latest version of the voice assistant into customers’ homes. Amazon is rolling out the devices as it faces growing competition from rivals including Apple, as well as AI companies such as OpenAI that have hardware ambitions.The Echo Show 16, which has a 16-inch screen, built-in Fire TV and Amazon’s first Echo Show camera with night vision, is priced at $499.99. A new Echo Studio speaker with a built-in camera, which lets Alexa recognize objects held up to it and lets users check on a room remotely, is priced at $249.99. The new Echo Dot is priced at $99.99. The device includes a built-in smart home hub and Wi-Fi extender for the first time.Echo Time is a bedside clock, priced at $199. According to the company, it uses sleep-sensing technology to wake users during lighter sleep, without a wearable device. The Alexa Photo Frame, starting at $199.99, syncs pictures automatically from Amazon Photos.
Amazon’s open memo to engineers
Just a day earlier, Amazon published a memo it shared with engineers in September on its website. Titled: ‘Update from Amazon engineering leadership on the role of the developer in the age of AI’; the memo has Amazon engineering leaders revise the role guideline for software development engineers, underscoring what matters most is the outcome, not which tools are used. “We all need to embrace this change and take the time to learn, or we risk being left behind. We’re just seeing the beginning of AI’s effect on software engineering. While we have a vision for what the future looks like, there’s a lot that’s still emerging. We are certain that whatever future best practices are, AI will be at the center of software engineering practice,” reads the memo.
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