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☆ Amazon to lay off 9,000 more workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Amazon is cutting 9,000 more jobs, CEO Andy Jassy announced Monday in a memo to staff. The latest cuts come after the company announced earlier this year that it was eliminating some 18,000 positions as part of a major cost-cutting bid at the e-commerce giant. “This was a difficult decision, but one that we think is best for the company long term,” Jassy wrote in the memo. Amazon, like a number of other Big Tech companies, also rapidly grew its headcount during the early days of the pandemic. Just last week, Facebook-parent Meta said it was laying off an additional 10,000 workers, on top of the 11,000 job cuts announced late last year.

☆ Amazon job cuts rise to 27,000, but it's still not enough to rightsize the company
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Paulina Likos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Amazon 's (AMZN) announcement Monday to eliminate another 9,000 employees in the coming weeks is a step in the right direction. The new Amazon cuts, which bring its recent total to 27,000, follow other tech layoffs. Andy Jassy, CEO of Club holding Amazon, detailed the company's actions in a memo to staff, saying these job cuts will mostly come from its Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud unit, advertising operations and videogame streaming platform Twitch. If Amazon turns into the leaner company want it to become, the stock could turn higher. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

☆ Amazon's post-Bezos experiment hasn't gone exactly as planned
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Annie Palmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos speaks during an Action on Forests and Land Use event on day three of COP26 at SECC on November 2, 2021 in Glasgow, United Kingdom. Since Jassy officially succeeded Bezos in July 2021, Amazon has experienced its most turbulent period since the dot-com crash. But whether it's bad luck, his own missteps or some combination of the two, Jassy is an unenviable position as only the second CEO in Amazon's history. So far, the Jassy era has been all about belt tightening and retrenchment from some of Amazon's more experimental pursuits. He made the decision to shutter all of its 4-star, Pop Up and Books stores and, earlier this year, announced Amazon would close some Fresh supermarkets and Go cashierless convenience marts.

☆ Amazon is laying off another 9,000 employees — read the email CEO Andy Jassy sent to staff
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Amazon is laying off another 9,000 employees. CEO Andy Jassy said the additional cuts weren't announced sooner because some teams hadn't finished their cost-cutting analysis. The layoffs will come on top of the cuts to 18,000 positions that the company disclosed in January. It also "led to new openings where we don't have the right skills match from our existing team members," Jassy wrote. The company is planning to conduct "limited hiring" in areas it is focusing on, he said.

☆ 10 stocks that are gaining market share for their disruptive innovations like AI, according to a portfolio manager
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

AI can be placed under the broad category of disruptive technology, which refers to innovations that change consumers' habits and displace old markets. Then, you have public cloud infrastructure that connects it all together, such as Amazon Web Services or the Google Compute Engine which provides infrastructure as a service (IaaS). For this reason, instead of taking the approach of creating something as narrow as an AI ETF, the ETF is focused on anything that signals disruption to an entire industry and changes the status quo. They have a "tremendous" market share in AI applications, and companies are hungry for their products, he noted. Analog Devices (ADI) provides technology that can translate atmospheric information into digital data to mean something to the hardware.

☆ Twitter employees nicknamed a Tesla executive 'the Elon whisperer' because of his ability to read Elon Musk's mood, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Twitter staff nicknamed a Tesla exec "the Elon whisperer" because of his ability to read Elon Musk's mood. Omead Afshar, the Tesla exec, joined Twitter late last year, according to the Financial Times. Omead Afshar, who once led Tesla's Gigafactory in Austin, joined Twitter last year and is part of Elon Musk's tight inner circle, according to the Financial Times. Afshar has been helping Musk with "the biggest, stickiest issues at the company," according to the report. According to The Information, Musk's company is at least $70 million behind on a five-year contract it signed with Amazon Web Services in 2020.

☆ SpaceX, Netflix, Boeing to join "biggest-ever" US business mission to Vietnam
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Francesco Guarascio | Thomson Reuters | Francesco Leads A Team Of Reporters In Vietnam That Covers Top Financial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HANOI, March 17 (Reuters) - SpaceX, Netflix and Boeing are among the companies joining the "biggest-ever" U.S. business mission to Vietnam next week to discuss investment and sales opportunities in the booming Southeast Asian nation, the organiser said. More than 50 companies, including defence, pharmaceutical and tech firms, will participate in the mission organised by the US-ASEAN Business Council, an industry body, according to a list seen by Reuters. "This is the biggest-ever mission in Vietnam," said Vu Tu Thanh, the US-ASEAN Business Council's representative in the country, noting that the body had been organising these events for three decades. The majority of the companies joining the business mission already have a business or manufacturing presence in Vietnam, including Apple (AAPL.O), Coca-Cola (KO.N) and PepsiCo (PEP.O), Thanh said, with some planning to expand it. Among them is SpaceX, which is looking to sell its satellite internet services to Vietnam and other countries in the region, Thanh said.

☆ Amazon just asked its software engineers to start using a new in-house AI tool, rather than ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy told employees last month that generative AI is a "significant area of focus" for the company. Amazon wants its engineers to start using its own ChatGPT-like artificial intelligence tool at work, as it looks to catch up in the AI chatbot space, Insider has learned. "Amazon CodeWhisperer is an AI-powered coding assistant that provides real-time recommendations in your IDE based on your existing code and comments," the email, titled "Start using Amazon CodeWhisperer today," said. The move signals Amazon's behind-the-scenes efforts to join the AI chatbot race, where it has been noticeably absent in the public space. He also said Amazon's investment in this space will only increase, highlighting the maturation of generative AI, which powers many of the AI chatbots.

☆ Oil plunge is bad for energy stocks but actually good for other areas of our portfolio
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The extent of the decline in West Texas Intermediate crude — down 5.5% to under $67 per barrel — seems overdone in an energy market that remains structurally undersupplied. Bad for energy stocks For now, we're holding onto our three oil exploration and production (E & P) stocks — Coterra Energy (CTRA), Devon Energy (DVN) and Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) — because their breakeven levels are around $40 per barrel. The big question is whether the federal government will make good on its signals to replenish the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) at WTI prices below $70 per barrel. In turn, higher energy costs eat into discretionary spending budgets. Now, with energy costs coming down, we would expect these input costs to subside a bit.

☆ The 5 best business credit cards for Amazon: Earn bonus rewards on Amazon purchases and services
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Jason Stauffer | Elizabeth Gravier | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

Regardless of what business expenses you have and the type of credit card rewards you prefer, there's a business card for you. Below, CNBC Select details the best credit cards for your Amazon business purchases, so you can make the best decision for your business or side hustle. The Amazon Business Prime American Express Card is the most rewarding credit card for Amazon business purchases. FAQsIf I have a personal Amazon credit card, can I still apply for a business Amazon credit card? Here's our analysisBottom lineThe right business credit card for your Amazon business purchases should be the most rewarding and offer benefits that align with your business' needs.

Powering AI Dungeon's text-generation software was the GPT language technology offered by the Microsoft -backed AI research lab OpenAI. The high cost of training and "inference" — actually running — large language models is a structural cost that differs from previous computing booms. Many entrepreneurs see risks in relying on potentially subsidized AI models that they don't control and merely pay for on a per-use basis. Companies making the foundation models, semiconductor makers, and startups all see business opportunities in reducing the price of running AI software. "Latitude is going to continue to evaluate all AI models to be sure we have the best game out there."

☆ In a leaked recording, an Amazon HR executive hints at rehiring employees who were laid off
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

AWS HR VP Ian Wilson said Amazon is looking for ways to rehire some of the laid off employees. Amazon laid off over 18,000 employees in January. Amazon slashed over 18,000 jobs in January to deal with slowing growth and a volatile economy. Some of those laid off employees may soon get a call to return to the company. Wilson said re-staffing laid off employees has been "top of mind" for him, but it's been difficult because of Amazon's recent hiring freeze.

☆ Here's what makes cybersecurity giant Palo Alto Networks tick and why we like the stock so much
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +22 min

Palo Alto Networks (PANW) last month had its best single trading day in about a year, exactly one week after the next-generation cybersecurity company became our newest Investing Club holding. Why Palo Alto Networks? PANW YTD mountain Palo Alto Networks (PANW) 1-year performance Palo Alto Networks is a great way to play a secular growth industry. Taking all of these segments together, Palo Alto Networks is a company capable of delivering on every aspect of cybersecurity under one roof. Palo Alto Networks' ESG practices, meanwhile, are overseen by the ESG and Nominating Committee, which provides counsel to the board in these matters.

☆ Here's what market forces and company innovations Club members care about most
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

I spent the day last weekend with CNBC Investing Club members in New York City. We own Meta, Amazon and Alphabet for my Charitable Trust, which we use as our Club portfolio. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB.

☆ Twitter revenue plunged in December as advertisers stayed away after Elon Musk's takeover, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Stephanie Stacey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Twitter revenues fell about 40% in December versus the same month in 2021, per Wall Street Journal. The slide came after many advertisers slashed spending following Elon Musk's takeover last October. That came after half of Twitter's top 100 advertisers pulled out in the first month after Musk's controversial takeover, per Media Matters. Some big names including Apple and Amazon have returned to the platform, but they're again under threat due to Twitter's controversial cost-cutting strategies. Twitter Blue, introduced last November, allows users to pay between $8 and $11 a month for the blue checkmarks that were previously reserved for high-profile figures.

☆ Salesforce faces an underappreciated risk: Platform customers jumping ship like Veeva
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Veeva built its core software on top of Salesforce's app-development platform, but that will be coming to an end in 2025. Peter Gassner, Veeva's founder and CEO, ran the Salesforce platform before starting Veeva in 2007. "Peter has been an outstanding CEO," Benioff was quoted as saying in 2017, as the two companies deepened their partnership. The agreement between the companies holds that Veeva is on the hook to pay Salesforce as Veeva customers use Salesforce's platform — and costs have risen as more people have come to rely on Veeva. But it has grown into a profitable publicly traded software company with $2 billion in annual revenue and a $28 billion market capitalization.

☆ Technology Chiefs Seek Help Wrangling Cloud Costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Belle Lin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Some chief information officers have turned to cloud management tools and established internal teams to oversee their cloud spending. Mr. Nimboorkar said the company has since built a dedicated team to manage its Amazon Web Services spending and invested in a third-party cloud spending management tool. Executives from all three cloud giants have said customers are optimizing or reining in their cloud spending, citing economic factors. Many of the best practices in cloud spending management have been codified by the nonprofit FinOps Foundation, which promotes cloud financial literacy and accountability, she said. That model allows Mr. Kanchi to wholly manage cloud spending, he said, but was only possible after UST figured out how to tag cloud usage by its various business units.

The news: Morgan Stanley said Alphabet, Amazon (AMZN) and Meta are among the stocks that are best positioned to capture long-term gains from maturing artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. AI has the ability to "accelerate digital transformation, change consumer behavior and drive more durable multi-year digital growth," Morgan Stanley analysts wrote in a research note this week. Moreover, this "AI Effect" could create a $780 billion online advertising opportunity, with "GOOGL and META as the largest beneficiaries," according to Morgan Stanley. The Club take: The Morgan Stanley note is further validation of just how real the generative AI opportunity is. So, it's encouraging to see Morgan Stanley paint a positive picture about Apple in the near-to-medium term.

☆ We're 'unusually long-term-oriented,' says Amazon Web Services
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWe're 'unusually long-term-oriented,' says Amazon Web ServicesConor McNamara of the cloud computing services company discusses its plan to invest $6 billion in Malaysia by 2037 to improve the cloud services infrastructure there.

☆ Amazon's cloud unit to invest $6 bln in Malaysia by 2037
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

March 1 (Reuters) - Amazon Web Services (AWS), the cloud computing division of Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), said on Wednesday it plans to invest $6 billion in Malaysia over the next 14 years to strengthen its cloud services infrastructure in the country. This marks the company's latest move in its plan to build AWS Infrastructure Regions across southeast Asia. The infrastructure hub will enable customers in the region to store data securely, the subsidiary said in a statement. AWS' cloud platform offers more than 200 services, including storage, robotics and artificial intelligence. Reporting by Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ex-Amazon managers say they were pressured to cut successful workers to meet attrition goals — and faced retribution when they resisted
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Shana Lebowitz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

Former Amazon managers say they were pressured to cut successful workers to meet attrition goals. In anticipation of Amazon's performance-review period, he told Insider, he'd kept careful notes on what his employees were doing well and where they could improve. These people said leadership would place employees in Focus even if the managers of those employees said that the workers had met or exceeded expectations. A few weeks later, he said, his manager told him he was on Pivot and had the option to leave the company with severance, which he did. Amazon managers are required to submit their performance ratings for employees in an online tool, then discuss their rationale with managers above them, he said.

☆ Here's our Annual Meeting update on 9 consumer names in the Club portfolio
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Paulina Likos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Here's an update on our consumer discretionary and consumer staples stocks in Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust, the 35 holdings that make up the CNBC Investing Club's portfolio. TJX Companies (TJX): TJX is a winner in a slower economy as shoppers love the treasure-hunting experience for cost-saving deals. If their stores have excess inventory, that could serve as a catalyst for TJX stock to go higher. Constellation Brands (STZ): Consumer demand for Constellation's premium alcoholic beverages is strong even as inflation weighs on consumers since people continue to drink beer in an economic slowdown. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

☆ Asia-Pacific's highly skilled digital workers earn up to 65% more than their peers, survey shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Higher salariesThe findings revealed the more highly skilled digital workers are, on average, drawing 58% higher wages than their peers who do not use digital skills at all. For the 28% who actually use a computer, only 8% use advanced digital skills while 14% use basic digital skills. Advanced digital workers in Indonesia are twice as likely to be highly satisfied with their jobs as compared to basic digital workers. On the other hand, job satisfaction of basic digital and advanced digital workers are nearly on par in high-income countries such as Australia and Japan. While almost two-thirds, or 63%, of the most advanced digital workers possess digital certifications, they do not have a bachelor's degree.

☆ Amazon, Wells Fargo, Microsoft, Nvidia are in the headlines. Here's our take on the news
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Club holdings Amazon (AMZN), Wells Fargo (WFC) as well as Nvidia (NVDA) and Microsoft (MSFT) are in the news Wednesday. In buying tech-focused One Medical, Amazon has said the companies together can make visiting the doctor an easier and more convenient experience. The news: A pair of banking regulators are investigating record-keeping failures at Wells Fargo, according to the company's annual filing. Specifically, Wells Fargo said the probes from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are focused on "business communications sent over unapproved electronic messaging channels." The Club's take: This is new disclosure from Wells Fargo is not cause for concern.

☆ Generative AI Helping Boost Productivity of Some Software Developers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Belle Lin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

The technology, known as generative AI, has been pioneered by OpenAI, the lab behind the ChatGPT writing system and the Dall-E visual illustration generator. Copilot, as well as other tools from Amazon.com Inc., International Business Machines Corp. , and startups like Tabnine Inc. and Magic AI Inc., have quickly found a receptive audience among developers seeking a productivity boost. The AI model behind Copilot is trained on data from GitHub, which houses a popular open-source community where developers contribute and share code. Newsletter Sign-up WSJ | CIO Journal The Morning Download delivers daily insights and news on business technology from the CIO Journal team. And, with a tightening economy in mind, Hyland Software is holding back on spending for any new tools or technologies.

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