Opinion - The consequences of Amazon's AI advancements affect us all

Amazon has announced the dismissal of 14,000 corporate employees, with reports suggesting additional layoffs may occur in January. Much of the media coverage emphasizes statements from Beth Galetti, senior vice president of people experience and technology, attributing the reductions to efficiency improvements driven by AI.

Having recently left Amazon after five years, I can attest that AI has not directly replaced my role. No algorithm currently performs the work I once did. However, the influence of the AI industry is being leveraged to consolidate control over employment and society. The tools engineers like me use are far from capable of fully replacing human labor. Even specialists who manage multiple AI systems report only minor productivity gains, often spending significant time correcting AI-generated errors.

Amazon management now expects considerably more output from each employee. While the company has always been demanding, long-term employees note that teams are handling more responsibilities with fewer people. This pressure has contributed to larger-scale operational failures, such as the October AWS outage, and pervasive anxiety over potential layoffs. This climate of fear allows the company to enforce aggressive productivity standards.

Amazons AI strategy is closely linked to its business model. Internally, employees are encouraged to utilize AI, while externally, the company is rapidly building data centers to provide computing power for other companies AI systems. For instance, Palantir runs immigration enforcement software on Amazon Web Services. Layoffs can therefore be seen both as cost-cutting measures for infrastructure expansion and as a signal to clients that using AWS AI tools can reduce their workforce.

In this sense, Amazon functions similarly to vendors during historical booms, profiting from the hype surrounding new opportunities. While profit-driven tech leadership is nothing new, the unprecedented level of collaboration with government agencies, from AI surveillance to regulatory rollbacks, raises new concerns about worker and citizen disenfranchisement.

Beyond the human cost, the environmental impact of rapid data center expansion is significant. These facilities require new gas power plants and extend the use of coal energy, contributing to rising utility costs and potential water shortages at a critical time for climate action. Reliance on harder work or personal effort cannot counteract the systemic risks posed by unchecked tech growth.

The tech industrys vision of AI as a tool for prosperity, creativity, and universal income clashes with efforts to resist taxation and social safety nets. The current trajectory threatens a dystopian future. Yet, there remains room for human intelligence and cooperation to steer AI toward societal benefit rather than concentrated profit. Collaborative action is essential to ensure that technological advancement serves the broader public interest.

Author: Grace Ellison