Earlier this month, Amazon confirmed plans to put off round 18,000 staff. The transfer has hit sure divisions arduous, together with Comixology and Prime Air. The latter’s drone supply program was simply beginning to achieve traction after commencing deliveries in take a look at markets and unveiling a brand new mannequin, however the layoffs have reportedly had a major affect on that workforce.
Prime Air staff discovered concerning the cuts on Wednesday, in response to CNBC. Workers within the drone supply division’s design, upkeep, techniques engineering, flight testing and flight operations groups are stated to have been laid off. Staff at a number of places have been dismissed, it has been claimed, together with at Amazon’s Seattle headquarters and a drone testing facility in Oregon. Round half of the workers on the take a look at website had been reportedly let go.
Headcount reductions had been seemingly anticipated given the various struggles that the drone supply group has endured through the years. In 2013, Amazon founder CEO Jeff Bezos introduced a plan to start out delivering packages by drone inside half-hour. After years of testing, the corporate lastly gained approval from the Federal Aviation Administration in 2020 to start out delivering orders by drone. Amazon started doing so in Lockeford, California, and Faculty Station, Texas, only a few weeks in the past.
A spokesperson declined to inform CNBC what number of Prime Air staff Amazon has let go. The layoffs come solely two months after the corporate unveiled a redesigned drone that would fly additional than its predecessor and face up to gentle rain.
In latest months, Amazon executives have laid off staff from the {hardware}, Alexa, robotics and bodily retailer divisions. CEO Andy Jassy stated in early January that the corporate was “prioritizing what issues most to prospects and the long-term well being of our companies.”
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