New Delhi: The US e-commerce giant Amazon.com, Inc. is reportedly preparing to reduce its India workforce by between 800 and 1,000 roles as part of a broader global shift in its operations that places artificial intelligence (AI) at the centre of its corporate strategy.
Sources indicate that the job cuts in India will span across functions including finance, human resources and technology, with the steepest impact likely in teams that collaborate most directly with Amazon’s global operations.
In a note circulated internally, Amazon India referred to a blog post by senior vice-president Beth Galetti (People Experience & Technology) in which she says the reduction is part of “continuation of this work to get even stronger by further reducing bureaucracy, removing layers, and shifting resources to ensure we’re investing in our biggest bets.”
Globally, Amazon has announced a second round of layoffs in as many years, following a warning by chief executive Andy Jassy in June 2025 that the company expects its corporate workforce to decline in the coming years as AI takes on more tasks. The firm’s annual investment in AI is reported to have risen to over USD 100 billion this year, up from USD 83 billion in 2024.
As of 30 June, Amazon’s global employee count stood at approximately 1.55 million, with its corporate workforce around 350,000.
The layoff figures in India remain unverified by Hindustan Times independently, as the company hasn’t publicly disclosed the exact number of job eliminations locally.
What this means for India and the broader industry
The move underscores how leading tech and e-commerce firms in India are recalibrating their workforce in response to AI-driven productivity gains. For employees engaged in global support, back-office or liaison functions — particularly those tied to overseas operations — the risk of role obsolescence is rising. The scale of impact on India’s tech and service industry is significant given the country’s role as a global centre for shared services, customer support and technology operations.
Industry analysts say that while Amazon will continue hiring in AI-related and high-growth domains, the cuts signal an end to indefinite workforce expansion in generic support roles. As companies automate more routine tasks, human capital is increasingly being redeployed to strategic, creative or customer-facing functions.