Amazon Plans to Automate 75% of Operations, Reducing Future Hiring Needs
ISTANBUL — Amazon is preparing to expand automation across its operations in a move that could sharply reduce the company’s need to hire hundreds of thousands of new workers in the United States, according to a report published Tuesday by The New York Times.
Large-Scale Automation Strategy
Internal company documents and interviews reviewed by the newspaper show that Amazon’s robotics division aims to automate about 75% of its business operations. The plan could allow the e-commerce giant to avoid hiring more than 160,000 workers by 2027 and potentially save around $12.6 billion between 2025 and 2027.
The company also projects that its product sales will double by 2033, even without significant increases in its workforce, according to the report.
Shift Toward Technology and Efficiency
Amazon has said that expanding automation will help remove repetitive tasks from employees’ routines and open new opportunities in technical fields such as robot maintenance and engineering.
The company has also adjusted its public language on the subject, the report noted. Rather than using terms like “robots” or “automation,” Amazon prefers words such as “advanced technology” and “cobot,” short for “collaborative robot,” to reduce public concern over job losses.
Company Response
Amazon has disputed the report’s findings, saying that the internal documents reviewed by The New York Times were incomplete and did not accurately represent its hiring plans.
Company spokesperson Kelly Nantel told the newspaper that Amazon still intends to hire 250,000 workers for the upcoming holiday season. However, she did not specify how many of those positions would be permanent.
Rapid Workforce Growth in Recent Years
Despite its automation goals, Amazon’s US workforce has grown significantly over the past several years. Since 2018, the company’s American staff has increased to about 1.2 million employees, making it one of the largest private employers in the country.
NEWS DESK
PRESS UPDATE