Amazon to replace more than half a million workers in massive automation drive – NYT
The strategy points to a seismic shift ahead, as robotics and AI redefine warehouse operations of the future
Amazon is preparing one of the most sweeping automation drives in corporate history. According to leaked internal documents reported by The New York Times, the company plans to automate up to 75 percent of its operations, a shift that could replace or avoid hiring roughly 600,000 workers in the United States by 2027.
The e-commerce giant already operates a fleet exceeding one million robots, but the scale of its new ambition is unprecedented. The strategy, spearheaded by Amazon’s robotics division, envisions fleets of “cobots” — machines designed to collaborate with humans —taking over vast swathes of warehouse and logistics work.
Models like Proteus and Sequoia are capable of navigating crowded spaces, lifting, and sorting packages autonomously. This transformation could save Amazon about $12.6 billion between 2025 and 2027, or roughly 30 cents on every item shipped, according to the report cited widely.
While Amazon frames automation as a means of improving efficiency and safety, the plan is expected to shrink the company’s US workforce of about 1.2 million in less than a decade, displacing those engaged in repetitive warehouse tasks. Amazon says automation will generate technical jobs in maintenance and systems engineering, but economists fear a widening gap between low-wage labour and high-skill employment.
Beyond warehouses, deployment of robots is increasing – from factories to hospitals. And new ventures are taking shape, promising to build sophisticated AI that will function as the brain of a robot. Industrial robot installations reached 4.66 million units worldwide in 2024, marking a 9 percent increase from the previous year and the second-highest annual count on record, according to the International Federation of Robotics.