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Tag: Amazon

  • It’s Crazy To Rely On Amazon To Sell Your Product

    It’s Crazy To Rely On Amazon To Sell Your Product

    Everybody who sells something through a third party needs to figure out their ecommerce strategy,” says VaynerMedia CEO Gary Vaynerchuk. “The thought to be reliant on retailers or Amazon or anybody else and not being the driving force of your own destiny of producing something and sending it to somebody is crazy to me.”

    Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of VaynerMedia discusses on Bloomberg the necessity for sellers of products to develop their own sales channels and to not rely on Amazon or other third-party sellers:

    It’s Crazy To Rely On Amazon To Sell Your Product

    Everybody who sells something through a third party needs to figure out their ecommerce strategy. The thought to be reliant on retailers or Amazon or anybody else and not being the driving force of your own destiny of producing something and sending it to somebody is crazy to me. Regardless of where the world is, try not to overextend yourself on CapEx and OpEx. Let’s get into the game. For others, it’s trying to mitigate their excitement on how good their numbers look so that they don’t overspend. 

    Innovation comes from times like this. If you’re selling through a retailer and you make a product you’re in a bad business. Walmart, Target, Albertsons, they have disproportionately too much leverage. If you’re selling through Amazon you’re really just setting up the next giant that’s going to have too much leverage and they’re going to ask you for more brand dollars and you’re going to spend less on the consumer. 

    I think the change that you’ll see, much like anything, you look at downtown, supermarkets, and now e-comm, I do think you’ll see a fragmentation of products going direct-to-consumer, not through Amazon or Walmart. In seven years I think that many will talk to this time as the aha moment of we need to get our act together on going direct to consumer.

    Customer Acquisition Costs Right Now Are Crazy Attractive

    Meanwhile, because this is a complicated game. Facebook and Instagram and Google prices are down in costs in the auctions because a lot of people are not spending. Customer acquisition costs right now are crazy attractive. So the cliche plays out. Cash-rich businesses always accelerate aggressively during downtimes. If you have the ability to spend on acquiring customers right now and have a healthy business there’s a huge growth opportunity.

    For others, it’s a restrategize opportunity. Dwelling and going on full defense is only the answer if you’re actually on the verge of going out of business.

    It’s Crazy To Rely On Amazon To Sell Your Product
  • Starlink Satellites Ruin Astronomy Photos

    Starlink Satellites Ruin Astronomy Photos

    A Space X Starlink satellite is being blamed for ruining photos of the NEOWISE comet.

    Space X, Amazon and a number of other companies are racing to deploy networks of low earth orbit (LEO) satellites to provide high-speed internet access. Unfortunately, however, they may have a significant downside.

    Astronomers have warned that tens of thousands of objects orbiting the planet could have a disastrous impact on efforts to observe the universe. Many of the satellites are highly reflective, possibly creating light interference. Even ones designed not to be reflective, can still physically interfere with line-of-sight if their orbit takes them between an observer and the object being observed. It appears those concerns are not without merit.

    According to The International Business Times, astrophotographer Daniel Lopez was recording pictures of NEOWISE when Starlink comments passed in from of the comet. The end result was photos with light streaks from the satellites, effectively blocking a good shot of NEOWISE.

    As more and more companies gain permission to launch satellites, this issue will need to be addressed. Otherwise, astronomers may find their profession exponentially more difficult.

  • FCC Green Lights Amazon’s Kuiper Satellite Plans

    FCC Green Lights Amazon’s Kuiper Satellite Plans

    Amazon has received the green light to move forward with its plans to launch a satellite constellation to provide internet access.

    Amazon announced Project Kuiper last spring. The project is aimed at launching a satellite constellation in low earth orbit (LEO) to provide internet access to underserved communities around the world.

    In a 5-0 vote, the FCC has approved Amazon’s plans, giving the company the go-ahead to move forward. Initially, Kuiper will involve some 3,236 satellites.

    “We have heard so many stories lately about people who are unable to do their job or complete schoolwork because they don’t have reliable internet at home,” said Dave Limp, Senior Vice President, Amazon. “There are still too many places where broadband access is unreliable or where it doesn’t exist at all. Kuiper will change that. Our $10 billion investment will create jobs and infrastructure around the United States that will help us close this gap. We appreciate the FCC’s unanimous, bipartisan support on this issue, and I want to thank Chairman Pai and the rest of the Commission for taking this important first step with us. We’re off to the races.”

    Following the FCC’s decision, Amazon vowed to invest some $10 billion in the project, with the goal of creating jobs and investing in infrastructure. With this announcement, it seems Starlink may have some stiff competition to content with.

  • Microsoft Scores Five-Year Cloud Deal With PepsiCo

    Microsoft Scores Five-Year Cloud Deal With PepsiCo

    Microsoft has scored a major contract that will see the Redmond-based company be the preferred cloud provider for PepsiCo.

    Microsoft’s Azure is firmly in second place in the US cloud market, behind Amazon’s AWS and ahead of Google Cloud. The company has made signification headway, and has been racking up a string of high-profile contracts.

    PepsiCo is the latest company to sign on with Azure, choosing it as its preferred cloud platform in a deal that will also see it deploy Microsoft 365 and Teams for all 270,000 employees.

    “As a global leader in convenient food and beverages, our commitment to the timely delivery of PepsiCo products has never been more important,” said PepsiCo CIO, Seth Cohen. “Through our partnership with Microsoft, we aim to improve service delivery capabilities to meet rising demand for essential goods while driving new innovations to make our operations and workforce stronger and more resilient for the future.”

    “Our partnership with PepsiCo applies Azure and AI capabilities to the ever-changing supply chain and retail landscape in new and exciting ways. By migrating PepsiCo’s global data estate and SAP landscapes to Azure, we’ll be able to help PepsiCo drive efficiencies from farmer to consumer,” said Deb Cupp, Microsoft CVP Enterprise Commercial Business. “We’re also pleased to deliver Microsoft 365 to PepsiCo’s associates worldwide as part of this partnership. Mobile communication and collaboration for PepsiCo’s workforce will be one of the keys to realizing the value Microsoft brings.”

    This is a huge win for Microsoft and will no doubt help it convince other companies to give Azure strong consideration.

  • Amazon Extends Work From Home Policy

    Amazon Extends Work From Home Policy

    Amazon has extended its work from home policy, as the pandemic continues to pick up throughout the country.

    Amazon had previously slated October as the month when employees would return to the office. According to Reuters, Amazon has extended that by three months, now allowing employees to work from home until January 8, 2020.

    The change is more in harmony with other tech giants, some of whom have instituted permanent work from home policies. Others, like Amazon, have instituted telecommute policies in place for the rest of the year.

    The ongoing adjustments to work policies are further evidence of the long-lasting impact the pandemic is having on the economy, as well as fundamental changes it is having on what is considered a “normal” workforce.

  • AWS Looks to the Final Frontier of Cloud Computing: Space

    AWS Looks to the Final Frontier of Cloud Computing: Space

    Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced a new space business segment aimed at taking cloud computing farther than ever.

    Space-based business ventures are coming into their own and getting off the ground (pun intended), with space-based internet, communications, cloud services and more. Manned space trips are increasing in frequency and importance, as countries are looking to the moon and Mars for possible colonization.

    AWS sees an opportunity to leverage their extensive cloud experience and portfolio to provide the backbone for these companies and industries. The new business unit, Aerospace and Satellite Solutions, will be run by retired Air Force Major Gen. Clint Crosier, who previously served as the director of Space Force Planning, referring to the latest branch of the US military.

    “We find ourselves in the most exciting time in space since the Apollo missions,” Crosier said in today’s announcement from Amazon. “I have watched AWS transform the IT industry over the last 10 years and be instrumental in so many space milestones. I am honored to join AWS to continue to transform the industry and propel the space enterprise forward.”

    Amazon’s investment in this space (pun intended again) illustrates the importance of the space industry to the US economy and technological future.

  • Amazon Reports Earnings, Will Spend Q2 Profits On COVID Expenses

    Amazon Reports Earnings, Will Spend Q2 Profits On COVID Expenses

    Amazon released its first quarter results, beating analysts revenue estimates while falling short of their earnings-per-share estimates.

    Amazon has been at the center of the coronavirus pandemic, as the e-commerce giant has become a lifeline for many consumers sheltering in place. At the same time, Amazon has struggled to keep up with demand, initially hiring 100,000 extra warehouse workers, only to announce they would hire another 75,000 after that. The company also cut back fulfillment on non-essential items in an effort to keep up.

    “From online shopping to AWS to Prime Video and Fire TV, the current crisis is demonstrating the adaptability and durability of Amazon’s business as never “before, but it’s also the hardest time we’ve ever faced,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO.

    With their earnings report, the dichotomy of Amazon’s position was made clear. The company reported $75.5 billion in revenue, up from analysts’ expectations of $73.61 billion. However, earnings-per-share were only $5.01, instead of the $6.25 analysts expected.

    Even more significantly, the company expects to spend all of the operating profit it will earn next quarter in an effort to deal with the challenges it’s facing as a result of the pandemic.

    “Under normal circumstances, in this coming Q2, we’d expect to make some $4 billion or more in operating profit,” Bezos continued. “But these aren’t normal circumstances. Instead, we expect to spend the entirety of that $4 billion, and perhaps a bit more, on COVID-related expenses getting products to customers and keeping employees safe. This includes investments in personal protective equipment, enhanced cleaning of our facilities, less efficient process paths that better allow for effective social distancing, higher wages for hourly teams, and hundreds of millions to develop our own COVID-19 testing capabilities.”

    Many tech companies have expressed concern about the next quarter, in spite of doing reasonably well this quarter, and it appears Amazon is no exception, despite how important it has become during these times.

  • AWS Unveils Low-Code Honeycode Development Service

    AWS Unveils Low-Code Honeycode Development Service

    Amazon Web Services (AWS) has released a beta of Honeycode, a low-code development service for cloud computing.

    AWS is the current, undisputed champion of cloud computing, with a commanding lead in the market. In spite of that, both Microsoft and Goole have made headway and are chipping away at AWS’ lead.

    Simultaneously, one of the biggest trends in the tech industry is low or no-code development. These tools provide a way for organizations to quickly prototype, develop and deploy applications with minimal coding. This can significantly reduce investment cost, and speed up development. Both Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud offer low-code development options.

    Now Amazon is playing catchup, with the release of Honeycode. Honeycode is described as “a fully managed service that allows customers to quickly build powerful mobile and web applications – with no programming required.”

    According to the company’s announcement, “customers can use a simple visual application builder to create highly interactive web and mobile applications backed by a powerful AWS-built database to perform tasks like tracking data over time and notifying users of changes, routing approvals, and facilitating interactive business processes. Using Amazon Honeycode, customers can create applications that range in complexity from a task-tracking application for a small team to a project management system that manages a complex workflow for multiple teams or departments.”

    It’s a safe bet Honeycode will be a popular addition to the AWS ecosystem and help the company as it continues to fend off Microsoft and Google.

  • Boston Bans Facial Recognition For Government Use

    Boston Bans Facial Recognition For Government Use

    Boston has joined the growing ranks of US cities that have banned the use of facial recognition by government officials.

    Facial recognition has become one of the most controversial technologies in use. In the wake of George Floyd’s death, organizations have been reevaluating their stand on facial recognition. Companies like Microsoft, IBM and Amazon have changed their policies to exclude selling their facial recognition tech to police.

    Much of this is because of the issues with bias that are prevalent in facial recognition. Despite their best efforts, companies have struggled to keep bias from creeping in on the basis of race, ethnicity and sex.

    These concerns have led cities to take action, banning facial recognition for government agencies. Oakland and San Francisco, California, as well as Cambridge, Massachusetts have already instituted such bans.

    According to Boston.com, “in a unanimous vote Wednesday afternoon, the 13-member body passed an ordinance prohibiting the use of facial recognition technology by Boston police and other city departments, amid evidence that the existing systems misidentify people of color at an exorbitantly high rate.”

    There are some exceptions. Police will still be able to obtain evidence from facial recognition technology, as long as that evidence was gathered by another agency investigating a “specific crime,” and was not at the behest of a Boston city official. Similarly, city officials will not be allowed to use facial recognition provided by third parties.

    Given the current political climate, it’s a safe bet Boston won’t be the last city to take such measures.

  • Amazon May Be Looking to Acquire Slack

    Amazon May Be Looking to Acquire Slack

    Amazon may be looking to acquire Slack to better compete with Microsoft and Google, as well as cash in on the work-from-home trend.

    Amazon and Slack recently inked a deal to deploy the messaging platform across the Amazon Web Services (AWS) workforce. At the same time, Slack committed to continued reliance on AWS as their cloud provider of choice, and will use Amazon’s Chime to power Slack Calls.

    Daniel Newman, an analyst at Futurum Research, has told Business Insider that the deal may be part of a much bigger plan for Amazon.

    “It’s a clear opportunity to get more deeply under the hood,” Newman told Business Insider. “Amazon’s Chime product is limited in adoption and Slack is beloved, but has no direction when you compare it to Zoom. Microsoft has Teams and Google has pretty complete meeting applications. When you look at a suitor like AWS, it’s a really good potential fit.”

    While no one knows for sure if Amazon is actually looking to purchase Slack, the move would make a lot of sense and shore up perceived weak spot. AWS leads the cloud market, but does not have the depth of software offerings that its rivals do, especially Microsoft and Google. Both of those companies have communication platforms that are hugely popular. This has led analysts to speculate Amazon might make a move for Slack even before this deal.

    Should the speculation prove true, the move could significantly alter the messaging market and give Amazon a competitive advantage.

  • Amazon Opening AWS Office in Redmond, Will Create 600 New Jobs

    Amazon Opening AWS Office in Redmond, Will Create 600 New Jobs

    Amazon has just fired a shot across Microsoft’s bow with plans to open a Redmond-based office that will house up to 600 AWS employees.

    Amazon has been increasing its presence in the Redmond area, with the city being chosen for Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellite endeavor. The company’s new offices, however, will host AWS engineering teams.

    It’s likely no accident Amazon has chosen Redmond for its new offices. In recent years, Microsoft Azure has emerged as the strongest competitor to AWS, so having a presence in Microsoft’s backyard makes sense.

    Officials for both Amazon and Redmond touted the announcement as one that would benefit the city, as well as Amazon’s employees.

    “Our new Redmond office is part of our plan to continue growing and creating jobs in the Puget Sound region,” said John Schoettler, Amazon’s vice president of global real estate and facilities. “In addition to Redmond’s strong existing talent pool and close access to our Seattle and Bellevue locations, these new facilities will also provide more flexible work options for employees, allowing us to continue our sustainable growth in the region for years to come.”

    “We are thrilled that Amazon has decided to create even more jobs and further invest in Redmond,” said Angela Birney, mayor of Redmond. “As we look to the future and people are able to get back to work, Amazon’s commitment to providing jobs for the community by utilizing existing talent in the Puget Sound Region will continue to strengthen Redmond’s growth and prosperity now and for years to come.”

  • Microsoft Joins IBM & Amazon, Won’t Sell Facial Recognition Tech to Police

    Microsoft Joins IBM & Amazon, Won’t Sell Facial Recognition Tech to Police

    Microsoft has become the third major tech company to announce it will not sell facial recognition technology to police.

    In the wake of George Floyd’s death, the US has been gripped by mass protests, with protesters, civil rights leaders, critics and politicians alike calling for police and social justice reform. Companies are also taking a fresh look at how the technology they invent is being used by police.

    IBM was the first major company to announce a moratorium on selling facial recognition software to police, with Amazon quickly following suit. Now Microsoft has made a similar announcement.

    “We will not sell facial-recognition technology to police departments in the United States until we have a national law in place, grounded in human rights, that will govern this technology,” company president Brad Smith told The Washington Post.

    IBM and Amazon likewise called on government to better regulate the technology. Facial recognition software is particularly vulnerability to abuse, as studies have shown it struggles to be unbiased when factoring in age, race and sex.

    While the government has yet to put strong safeguards in place, it seems tech companies are now self-regulating to an unprecedented degree.

  • Amazon Follows IBM, Bans Police Use of Rekognition

    Amazon Follows IBM, Bans Police Use of Rekognition

    Amazon has announced a one-year moratorium on police use of its facial recognition software, Rekognition.

    IBM previously announced it was ending the sale of general purpose facial recognition software in an effort to support civil rights and police reform. Now Amazon is following suit, banning police use of its own facial recognition software for one year.

    Amazon’s statement, in its entirety, reads:

    We’re implementing a one-year moratorium on police use of Amazon’s facial recognition technology. We will continue to allow organizations like Thorn, the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and Marinus Analytics to use Amazon Rekognition to help rescue human trafficking victims and reunite missing children with their families.

    We’ve advocated that governments should put in place stronger regulations to govern the ethical use of facial recognition technology, and in recent days, Congress appears ready to take on this challenge. We hope this one-year moratorium might give Congress enough time to implement appropriate rules, and we stand ready to help if requested.

    When IBM announced its decision, we wrote: “In the wake of recent events, however, it’s likely IBM won’t be the only company to take such a stand.”

    Amazon has proved that statement true, and it will likely not be the last company to do so.

  • AWS Deploys Slack Across Workforce

    AWS Deploys Slack Across Workforce

    Slack has scored another major win, as Amazon Web Services (AWS) has adopted the messaging platform for all its employees.

    The deal is part of a collaboration between the two companies, with Slack continuing to use AWS as its preferred cloud provider. Meanwhile, AWS will deploy Slack to all its employees to help teams communicate more efficiently.

    As part of Slack’s ongoing reliance on AWS, the platform will migrate to Amazon’s Chime voice and video calling service to power Slack Calls. The company assures customers they will not notice any difference in the short-term. In the long-term, using Amazon Chime to power Slack Calls will enable the company to add more features and advanced capabilities.

    “The future of enterprise software will be driven by the combination of cloud services and workstream collaboration tools,” says Stewart Butterfield, the co-founder and CEO of Slack. “Strategically partnering with AWS allows both companies to scale to meet demand and deliver enterprise-grade offerings to our customers. By integrating AWS services with Slack’s channel-based messaging platform, we’re helping teams easily and seamlessly manage their cloud infrastructure projects and launch cloud-based services without ever leaving Slack.”

    The partnership will likely benefit both companies, with Slack’s customers standing the most to gain.

  • Microsoft Establishing First Data Center in New Zealand

    Microsoft Establishing First Data Center in New Zealand

    Microsoft has announced it is establishing its first data center in New Zealand, as it works to expand its enterprise cloud services in the country.

    Microsoft has been working to grow its Azure cloud business and has been making significant headway against market leader AWS. One area where Microsoft is aggressively making headway is in its datacenter regions. The company already has more datacenters globally than any other provider, with 60 regions announced, and more than 140 countries.

    “This significant investment in New Zealand’s digital infrastructure is a testament to the remarkable spirit of New Zealand’s innovation and reflects how we’re pushing the boundaries of what is possible as a nation,” said Vanessa Sorenson, general manager, Microsoft New Zealand. “The Fletcher School’s Digital Evolution Index characterizes New Zealand as a ‘standout nation’ demonstrating to the world what the future might look like. I’m confident this investment will help accelerate our digital evolution.”

    Microsoft’s announcement should help the company continue its expansion, delivering scalable solutions to New Zealand businesses and organizations.

  • AWS VP Quits Over Coronavirus Protester Firings

    AWS VP Quits Over Coronavirus Protester Firings

    A well-known AWS VP and Distinguished Engineer has quit his job over Amazon firing coronavirus whistleblowers.

    Tim Bray published his decision in an open letter on his website, outlining his reasons for leaving the company. Bray had worked at Amazon for over five years. Prior to that, he had worked at Google for four years. Bray says he “quit in dismay at Amazon firing whistleblowers who were making noise about warehouse employees frightened of Covid-19.”

    The problems began with climate protests within the company last year, which Bray says resulted in protest leaders being threatened with dismissal. Things took a downhill turn with the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, with workers complaining that not enough was being done to inform and protect them, despite official claims to the contrary.

    Things escalated when “a worker organizing for better safety conditions was fired, and brutally insensitive remarks appeared in leaked executive meeting notes where the focus was on defending Amazon ‘talking points.’”

    Within short order, individuals leading protests were fired using reasons that Bray called “laughable.” He maintains that any objective observer could see the firings for what they were—an attempt to silence whistleblowers.

    “At that point I snapped,” Bray continues. “VPs shouldn’t go publicly rogue, so I escalated through the proper channels and by the book. I’m not at liberty to disclose those discussions, but I made many of the arguments appearing in this essay. I think I made them to the appropriate people.

    “That done, remaining an Amazon VP would have meant, in effect, signing off on actions I despised. So I resigned.”

    Mr. Bray’s entire post is well worth a read. He has praise for AWS division and how it treats its employees, while making the point that the elite status of AWS workers necessitates better treatment. In contrast, the relatively low-paid warehouse workers don’t have the same power or platform to demand proper treatment.

    Whatever one thinks of Amazon, whistleblowers or even Mr. Bray, one must admire a man willing to stand up for what he believes in—even at great cost to himself.

  • DOJ Inspector General Lends Support to Microsoft’s JEDI Win Over Amazon

    DOJ Inspector General Lends Support to Microsoft’s JEDI Win Over Amazon

    The Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General (IG) has reviewed Microsoft’s JEDI win and found no interference by the Trump administration.

    Microsoft stunned the industry when it won the Pentagon’s Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI) contract, worth some $10 billion. Amazon had widely been considered the likely candidate to win the contract, especially given the company’s history of working on sensitive government contracts in the past. In short order, Amazon launched legal challenges to try to have the Pentagon’s decision overturned. One of the alleged discrepancies was disparaging comments President Trump made that Amazon believed may have played a part in Microsoft winning.

    With the DOJ watchdog’s report, however, those concerns seem to have been put to rest—albeit with a bit of a caveat. While acknowledging investigators did encounter some interference from the White House, they said: “However, we believe the evidence we received showed that the DoD personnel who evaluated the contract proposals and awarded Microsoft the JEDI Cloud contract were not pressured regarding their decision on the award of the contract by any DoD leaders more senior to them, who may have communicated with the White House.”

    At the same time, Microsoft has used the DOJ’s report to accuse Amazon of unfairly trying to gain an advantage in the bidding process. In a blog post following the DOJ’s report, Microsoft said the following:

    “That brings us to where we are today. The DoD is seeking to be responsive to the issue the Court raised in issuing the preliminary injunction. But that’s not good enough for Amazon. Amazon doesn’t want a solution that addresses the Court’s concerns and sticks to the original pricing in the competitors’ bids. According to its brief, it wants no ‘constraint on the offerors’ ability to revise their pricing.’

    “This, according to the government, is a ‘a transparent effort to undercut Microsoft on price, now that [Amazon] has a target at which to aim.’ Amazon dresses its argument in the language of fairness and level playing fields, but the government’s brief looks right through it: ‘That AWS now regrets its pricing strategy is no reason to allow AWS a do-over, after it gained significant information about its competitor’s pricing, enabling it to use the currently prevailing information asymmetry to underbid its competitor in an effort to secure the contract.’”

    While not clearing Microsoft to move forward with the contract, the IG’s findings certainly lend weight to Microsoft’s win and undermine Amazon’s complaints.

  • Jeff Bezos: Protecting Employees Might Involve ‘Regular Testing’

    Jeff Bezos: Protecting Employees Might Involve ‘Regular Testing’

    In a letter to shareholders, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said regular testing may be a critical component in protecting Amazonians.

    As the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll, Amazon has become a critical lifeline for many individuals and organizations. The company recently hired an additional 100,000 warehouse workers, only to announce it would hire an additional 75,000 more to help keep up with demand.

    At the same time, the company is facing challenges keeping its workers safe. As workers become infected, there is an ever increasing threat of the virus spreading and shutting down entire warehouses and distribution centers, threatening the entire supply chain. To help reduce the risk, Amazon already has a team working on building out incremental testing capacity.

    “A next step in protecting our employees might be regular testing of all Amazonians, including those showing no symptoms,” writes Bezos. “Regular testing on a global scale, across all industries, would both help keep people safe and help get the economy back up and running. For this to work, we as a society would need vastly more testing capacity than is currently available. If every person could be tested regularly, it would make a huge difference in how we fight this virus. Those who test positive could be quarantined and cared for, and everyone who tests negative could re-enter the economy with confidence.

    “We’ve begun the work of building incremental testing capacity. A team of Amazonians—from research scientists and program managers to procurement specialists and software engineers—moved from their normal day jobs onto a dedicated team to work on this initiative. We have begun assembling the equipment we need to build our first lab and hope to start testing small numbers of our frontline employees soon. We are not sure how far we will get in the relevant timeframe, but we think it’s worth trying, and we stand ready to share anything we learn.”

    Bezos’ announcement is good news and will hopefully help ensure Amazon is able to keep its employees safe, and keep the supply chain running.

  • Amazon Raises Warehouse Hires to 175,000

    Amazon Raises Warehouse Hires to 175,000

    Amazon announced it has hired the initial 100,000 warehouse workers it originally pledged, and is now hiring an additional 75,000.

    In the midst of the worst pandemic since the Spanish Flu, Amazon has been a lifeline for many individuals. The e-commerce giant has been struggling, however, to keep up with demand for groceries and basic necessities, even limiting fulfillment of non-essential items. In an effort to keep up, Amazon previously announced it would hire an additional 100,000 warehouse workers, even starting them at $2 an hour more than standard pay.

    Now the company has confirmed it has hired those initial 100,000 additional workers, and is expanding its hiring to include 75,000 more.

    “Today, we are proud to announce our original 100,000 jobs pledge is filled, and those new employees are working at sites across the U.S.,” reads the company’s blog post. “We continue to see increased demand as our teams support their communities, and are going to continue to hire, creating an additional 75,000 jobs to help serve customers during this unprecedented time. Interested candidates can apply at www.amazon.com/jobsnow.”

    Amazon’s announcement is good news for everyone concerned. The additional workers will help the company keep up with demand as the crisis drags on, while the new jobs will be a lifesaver to individuals whose livelihood is being impacted.

  • Amazon Detective is The Investigator You Need For AWS

    Amazon Detective is The Investigator You Need For AWS

    Amazon has announced the release of Amazon Detective, a tool to automate the processing of investigating cloud security issues.

    Dealing with cloud security issues can tax even the largest companies. As organizations move to the cloud, it can open a whole new world of threats, requiring a completely different approach to security. Unfortunately, while cloud services often provide ample data to investigate any issues that arise, the sheer amount of data can be overwhelming.

    That’s where Amazon Detective come into play. “Amazon Detective is a fully managed service that empowers users to automate the heavy lifting involved in processing large quantities of AWS log data to determine the cause and impact of a security issue,” writes Sébastien Stormacq. “Once enabled, Detective automatically begins distilling and organizing data from AWS Guard Duty, AWS CloudTrail, and Amazon Virtual Private Cloud Flow Logs into a graph model that summarizes the resource behaviors and interactions observed across your entire AWS environment.”

    Amazon Detective was originally previewed at re:invent 2019, but is now available to all AWS customers as of March 31.

  • Amazon Using AI to Understand Searches

    Amazon Using AI to Understand Searches

    Amazon is using artificial intelligence (AI) to better understand search queries and why a person may be looking for something.

    Understanding why a customer searches for a product is just as import as knowing what they searched for. Knowing the context can help a retailer make relevant recommendations for other products that not only compliment the item being searched for, but the activity or reason behind the search. Amazon is intent on cracking that piece of the puzzle, and is applying AI to the problem.

    “In a paper accepted to the ACM SIGIR Conference on Human Information Interaction and Retrieval, my colleagues and I present a new neural-network-based system for predicting context of use from customer queries,” writes Adrian Boteanu. “From the query ‘adidas mens pants’, for instance, the system predicts the activity ‘running.’

    “In tests, human reviewers agreed, on average, with 81% of the system’s predictions, indicating that the system was identifying patterns that could improve the quality of Amazon’s product discovery algorithms.”

    As Amazon continues to improve its algorithms, shoppers should see increasingly relevant shopping recommendations and the research could open a whole new arena for personalized digital shopping assistants.