Amazon has confirmed significant layoffs impacting its corporate workforce, with engineers bearing the heaviest burden of the cuts. The company announced plans last month to eliminate approximately 14,000 corporate roles as part of a sweeping organizational shift. Newly disclosed documents reveal that these reductions have disproportionately affected mid-level software engineers.
Engineering roles hit hardest
According to Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filings in New York, California, New Jersey, and Amazon’s home state of Washington, nearly 40% of the 4,700 identified job losses in these states were engineering roles, with mid-level software engineers (SDE II) particularly impacted. These filings account for a significant portion of the layoffs announced but do not represent the entire reduction, as reporting requirements vary across states.
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Largest layoffs in Amazon’s history
The 14,000 corporate job cuts mark the steepest workforce reduction in Amazon’s 31-year history, aligning the online retail giant with other tech companies that have downsized despite maintaining strong profits. Data from Layoffs.fyi indicates that 2025 saw nearly 113,000 job cuts across 231 tech companies, highlighting a widespread trend of cost-cutting in the sector following the pandemic.
CEO explains cultural shift amid restructuring
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy has framed the layoffs as part of a broader effort to streamline the company, emphasizing a shift in its operational culture. Speaking during the company’s quarterly earnings call, Jassy said, "The announcement that we made a few days ago was not really financially driven, and it's not even really AI-driven, not right now at least. It really - it's culture." He added that rapid growth in recent years has led to "a lot more people than what you had before, and you end up with a lot more layers."
Jassy has been vocal about transforming Amazon into what he described as "the world’s largest startup", encouraging teams to operate more efficiently by cutting through layers of bureaucracy. While the company has emphasized that artificial intelligence (AI) was not the primary driver behind these layoffs, Jassy has predicted that efficiency gains from AI could lead to further reductions in corporate headcount in the coming years.
Broader impact across divisions
The impact of the layoffs extended beyond engineering roles, with significant reductions in Amazon’s gaming, advertising, and experimental units. WARN filings show that in Irvine, game designers, artists, and producers accounted for more than a quarter of layoffs, while in San Diego, they made up 11% of job losses. Amazon has reportedly scaled back its plans for major gaming projects, including a highly anticipated Lord of the Rings MMO title.
The company’s advertising division was also significantly affected. In New York alone, over 140 ad sales and marketing positions were cut, accounting for 20% of the 760 layoffs in the state. Additionally, more than 500 roles were eliminated within experimental units, such as those behind Amazon Lens and Lens Live, particularly in Palo Alto.
Conclusion
Amazon’s decision to cut 14,000 corporate jobs reflects the company’s ongoing efforts to reorganize and adapt to shifting priorities. While the layoffs represent a pivotal moment in the company’s history, they also underscore broader challenges facing the tech industry as companies seek to balance growth with efficiency.
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