Amazon Layoffs: Engineering and Gaming Teams Take the Biggest Hit in October Cuts

Amazon’s major round of layoffs in October—one of the largest in the company’s history—resulted in the removal of over 14,000 employees as part of a broad restructuring strategy. The job cuts affected nearly every division, including cloud services, devices, advertising, retail, and grocery operations.

According to official filings, the engineering division was hit the hardest, especially in states like New York, California, Washington, and New Jersey. Out of the 4,700 layoffs recorded in these regions, 40% were engineers, making them the most impacted group.

Following engineers, around 500 product managers and program managers were laid off, accounting for over 10% of the total cuts.

The restructuring also had a substantial impact on Amazon’s gaming division. Several employees from creative and production roles—such as game designers, artists, and producers—lost their jobs, signaling a major shake-up in the company’s gaming operations.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy stated that the layoffs were part of an overall organizational overhaul and confirmed that another round of workforce reductions is expected in January 2026.

While Amazon insists that AI was not the primary driver behind the layoffs, Jassy told investors that many white-collar roles may shrink as AI improves business efficiency. Amazon HR head Beth Galetti echoed this in her memo to employees, calling the current AI wave “the most transformative technology since the Internet” and emphasizing the rapid pace at which companies can now innovate.