The head of Amazon’s hardware division has confirmed that the tech giant is cutting jobs. Dave Limp, who leads the company’s Devices & Services organization, told his team that Amazon would “consolidate some teams and programs” and that “some roles will no longer be required.”
“It pains me to have to deliver this news as we know we will lose talented Amazonians from the Devices & Services org as a result,” Limp wrote in a note to staff shared by Amazon. “While I know this news is tough to digest, I do want to emphasize that the Devices & Services organization remains an important area of investment for Amazon, and we will continue to invent on behalf of our customers.”
Limp didn’t share how many employees would be affected, but an earlier report in The New York Times indicated as many as 10,000 jobs could be cut as a result of the layoffs. Limp said that Amazon was providing employees with “a package that includes a separation payment, transitional benefits, and external job placement support.” He added that some workers may be able to find different jobs within Amazon.
In a statement, an Amazon spokesperson said that “some teams are making adjustments” but didn’t elaborate on how make team or employees would be affected by the cuts. “As part of our annual operating planning review process, we always look at each of our businesses and what we believe we should change,” the spokesperson said. “As we’ve gone through this, given the current macro-economic environment (as well as several years of rapid hiring), some teams are making adjustments, which in some cases means certain roles are no longer necessary. We don’t take these decisions lightly, and we are working to support any employees who may be affected.”
Amazon is the latest tech giant to lay off large numbers of staff in recent weeks. Meta cut 11,000 jobs last week, its first-ever mass-layoffs, and Twitter laid off about half its staff and cut thousands of contractor jobs.
Update 11/16 4:30 PM ET: Added a statement from Amazon.