As it plans to scale its use of generative artificial intelligence, Amazon expects to reduce the company’s corporate workforce over the next few years.

In a public letter to staff released on June 17, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the reduction is expected to occur gradually through attrition.

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Some roles will be phased out while new types of jobs will be created as AI tools become more integrated into operations. However, Jassy did not specify how much the workforce would shrink. He said efficiency gains from AI would lead to fewer people doing certain jobs.

“As we roll out more Generative AI and agents, it should change the way our work is done,” wrote Jassy, who became the company’s CEO in mid-2021. “We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs. It’s hard to know exactly where this nets out over time, but in the next few years, we expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce as we get efficiency gains from using AI extensively across the company.”

Amazon has more than 1.5 million employees worldwide, of which the number of corporate employees is estimated to be around 350,000 as of early 2023. Some more recent reports suggest that corporate figure has since declined at least slightly.

Jassy described generative AI as a significant technological shift. He said the company is currently using it in areas such as Alexa, shopping assistance, advertising, fulfillment and customer service. These tools have allegedly improved forecasting, automation and product listings.

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Amazon has developed or deployed more than 1,000 AI services and applications across its business. The technology is being used to assist sellers, advertisers, software developers and internal teams. AI is also being used to improve inventory placement and delivery speed.

In the letter, Jassy encouraged employees to become familiar with AI tools, attend training sessions and search for ways to apply the technology in their roles.

To read Jassy’s note to employees, click here.