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☆ Davos 2023-Uber not planning any company-wide layoffs -CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Uber Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi said in Davos on Thursday that he was not currently planning any company-wide layoffs. The rideshare and delivery company has worked to cut costs for months, early enough relative to others that a memo the CEO wrote on this tougher stance "landed a bit like a lead balloon initially," Khosrowshahi said at a Wall Street Journal event on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting. For daily Davos updates in your inbox sign up for the Reuters Daily Briefing here. Reporting by Jeffrey Dastin; Editing by Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] Visitors queue in front of the Ukraine House during the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2023, in the Alpine resort of Davos, Switzerland, January 16, 2023. It is about creating momentum and giving assurances that even during the war, Ukraine is not closed for business. "Ukraine has shown resilience in war time and business too so we have to find additional tools on how to facilitate Ukraine business to develop and foreign investment to come to Ukraine even now," she said. WAR NOT ENDING SOONZelenskiy addressed BlackRock executives and its clients in Davos via Zoom on Tuesday, a person who attended said. In Davos, an exhibition at Ukraine House reminds visitors of the scale of the destruction.

In a note to employees, CEO Satya Nadella attempted to address the divergent outlook for different parts of the business. Nadella said the layoffs, affecting less than 5% of Microsoft's workforce, would conclude by the end of March, with notifications beginning Wednesday. Along with Amazon, Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) announced cuts of 11,000 jobs, while cloud-based software company Salesforce Inc (CRM.N) said it would cut 10% of its 80,000-member workforce. Under U.S. law, most employers are required to report staff cuts affecting 50 or more workers at a single location. But growth dropped to 35% in the first fiscal quarter of 2023, and the company projects more declines to come.

The layoffs, far larger than cuts by Microsoft last year, add to the tens of thousands of job cuts across the technology sector, which has downshifted following a strong growth period during the pandemic. Nadella said the layoffs, affecting less than 5% of Microsoft's workforce, would conclude by the end of March, with notifications beginning Wednesday. The cuts reflect broader belt-tightening in the technology sector. The CEO of another company serving enterprises, Palantir Technologies Inc (PLTR.N), this week told Reuters that reducing cloud spending was a top-ten priority for his customers. Microsoft's cloud revenues soared in recent years from an explosion in corporate demand to host data online and handle computing in the so-called cloud.

☆ Davos 2023: CEOs buzz about ChatGPT-style AI at World Economic Forum
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Business titans trudging through Alpine snow can't stop talking about a chatbot from San Francisco. Businesses including CarMax Inc (KMX.N) have already used Microsoft and OpenAI's tech, such as to generate thousands of customer review summaries when marketing used vehicles. Such buzz carried through gatherings at Davos, like talk about a slide-generating bot dubbed ChatBCG after the management consulting firm. loadingGenerative AI is "a game-changer that society and industry need to be ready for," stated an article on the World Economic Forum's website. Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in Davos, Switzerland; Editing by Kenneth Li and Gerry DoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Microsoft to expand ChatGPT access as OpenAI investment rumors swirl
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 16 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) on Monday said it is widening access to hugely popular software from OpenAI, a startup it is backing whose futuristic ChatGPT chatbot has captivated Silicon Valley. The news site Semafor reported earlier this month that Microsoft might invest $10 billion; Microsoft declined to comment on any potential deal. Public interest in OpenAI surged following its November release of ChatGPT, a text-based chatbot that can draft prose, poetry or even computer code on command. ChatGPT itself, not just its underlying tech, will soon be available via Microsoft's cloud, it said in a blog post. Microsoft said CarMax, KPMG and others were using its Azure OpenAI service.

☆ Davos 2023: Palantir CEO predicts hiring while preparing for economic slowdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Palantir Technologies Inc (PLTR.N) is still looking to grow its headcount even as it scrutinizes its spending and confronts economic uncertainty, its chief executive told Reuters. Economists surveyed by the World Economic Forum largely expect a recession this year. Asked about potential cuts, Karp said Palantir was doing well in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada while evaluating spend in slower markets. The top cloud providers are Amazon (AMZN.O), Microsoft (MSFT.O) and Google (GOOGL.O), though Karp said his company is "cloud agnostic." Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in Davos, Switzerland; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Amazon workers' union victory upheld by U.S. labor board director
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 11 (Reuters) - A U.S. labor board director has upheld Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) workers' landmark union victory at a warehouse in New York, according to a decision issued Wednesday, bringing the online retailer closer to having to bargain with staff on a contract. The Amazon Labor Union (ALU) celebrated the labor board director's decision. "This is a HUGE moment for the labor moment!" Workers in different facilities in New York state have rejected joining the union in two elections since, and Amazon filed objections to conduct during the original contest. The NLRB regional director overruled those objections on Wednesday, in line with an NLRB hearing officer's recommendations last year.

Jan 4 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc's (AMZN.O) layoffs will now stretch to more than 18,000 roles as part of a workforce reduction it previously disclosed, Chief Executive Andy Jassy said in a public staff note on Wednesday. The layoff decisions, which Amazon will communicate starting Jan. 18, will largely impact the company's e-commerce and human-resources organizations, he said. Amazon has more than 1.5 million workers including warehouse staff, making it America's second-largest private employer after Walmart Inc (WMT.N). It began letting staff go in November from its devices division, with a source telling Reuters at the time it was targeting 10,000 job cuts. In number, its layoffs now surpass the 11,000 job cuts at Facebook-parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) as well as reductions at other tech-industry peers.

☆ Palantir lands 75 million pound deal with British military
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 21 (Reuters) - Palantir Technologies Inc (PLTR.N) has signed a three-year, 75 million pound ($91.39 million) deal with the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defense, the U.S. software company said Wednesday, expanding its overseas military work months into the Ukraine war, Europe's biggest conflict since World War II. Palantir will aid military operations and intelligence, further widening access to its software across the defense ministry after a narrower pilot with the Royal Navy that started years ago. Abundant satellite imagery lets military analysts in little time detect changes on the battlefield, with artificial intelligence software identifying tanks, artillery or other targets. Despite the war, Palantir shares have tumbled like other tech stocks this year, falling by about half since March. ($1 = 0.8207 pounds)Reporting by Jeffrey Dastin; Additional reporting by Paresh Dave; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Three sources briefed on OpenAI's recent pitch to investors said the organization expects $200 million in revenue next year and $1 billion by 2024. OpenAI was most recently valued at $20 billion in a secondary share sale, one of the sources said. The startup has already inspired rivals and companies building applications atop its generative AI software, which includes the image maker DALL-E 2. OpenAI has also attracted attention as an AI provider and potential Google search competitor, with ChatGPT answering queries for more than 1 million users so far. OpenAI warns users, ChatGPT "may occasionally produce harmful instructions or biased content."

☆ Amazon's cloud unit wants to widen appeal of cashier-less tech
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LAS VEGAS, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) hopes to interest a wider range of industries in the technology it developed for cashier-less checkout at brick-and-mortar shops, a vice president said. Since 2020, it has sold these systems to food and retail markets in airports, professional and university stadiums, and a convention center. In India, an area of growth for Amazon, it has bought another cashier-less company called Watasale, he said. TechCrunch in September reported Watasale's founders had moved to the online retailer, but Amazon had no comment on the acquisition at the time. Reporting by Jeffrey Dastin in Las Vegas; Editing by Howard GollerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Akin to lengthy nutrition labels, Amazon's so-called AI Service Cards will be public so its business customers can see the limitations of certain cloud services, such as facial recognition and audio transcription. The goal would be to prevent mistaken use of its technology, explain how its systems work and manage privacy, Amazon said. The cards would address AI ethics concerns publicly at a time when tech regulation was on the horizon, said Kearns. Amazon chose software touching on sensitive demographic issues as a start for its service cards, which Kearns expects to grow in detail over time. In 2019, Amazon contested a study saying the technology struggled to identify the gender of individuals with darker skin tones.

☆ Amazon unveils supply-chain, cloud services drawing on its retail arm
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

At its annual Las Vegas conference, the cloud unit also showed off AWS Clean Rooms, which allows businesses to tailor ads to customers while maintaining their privacy, among other applications. The services are part of Amazon's long-time strategy to develop functions for its e-commerce arm and then offer them to other companies. At the same time, Amazon's cloud has lost out on sales to brick-and-mortar retailers which are reluctant to hire a company that is also their e-commerce competitor. Other new services it announced include Amazon Omics for genomic analysis and Amazon Security Lake, which helps businesses assemble data from cybersecurity vendors and other sources. Reporting by Jeffrey Dastin in Las Vegas; Editing by Richard ChangOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Amazon touts new data, security services to win cloud business
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LAS VEGAS, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) on Tuesday announced data and security services for businesses in an effort to win more sales and stay the largest cloud-computing provider, ahead of rivals Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google. At an annual conference in Las Vegas, its cloud division announced Amazon DataZone to help businesses control access to internal data, with Fox Corp as one of the launch customers, according to a press release. Other new services included Amazon Security Lake helping enterprises aggregate information from cybersecurity vendors and other sources. Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in Las VegasOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Amazon laid off some devices unit staff as it targets 10,000 cuts
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Amazon executive Dave Limp in a blog post said the company had decided to consolidate teams in its devices unit, which popularized speakers that consumers command through speech. At the time, Amazon touted sales of more than 100 million Alexa devices, a figure it has not since refreshed publicly. Founder Jeff Bezos later said the company often sold Alexa devices at a discount and sometimes below cost. For Amazon, the cuts sharply contrast with efforts months ago to double its base pay ceiling to compete more aggressively for talent. Under his tenure Amazon announced the end of its virtual healthcare service for employers and pruning of its much-hyped autonomous sidewalk delivery program.

☆ Amazon starts cost cuts with layoffs at devices, services units
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 16 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) is laying off employees in its devices and services units, America's second largest private employer informed its staff on Wednesday following recent reports that it would cut around 10,000 jobs. The e-commerce giant did not share details on the number of jobs it will cut or a time period. Some individuals working on Alexa took to networking site LinkedIn on Tuesday saying they have lost their jobs. At the time, Amazon touted sales of more than 100 million Alexa devices, a figure it has not since refreshed publicly. Founder Jeff Bezos later said the company often sold Alexa devices at a discount and sometimes below cost.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said it was watching Twitter with "deep concern" after these three privacy and compliance officers quit. Twitter did not respond to requests for comment on a potential bankruptcy, the FTC warning, or the departures. Wheeler was the face of Twitter for advertising after Musk took over. Musk has saddled Twitter with $13 billion in debt, on which it faces interest payments totaling close to $1.2 billion in the next 12 months. It joined other brands including General Motors (GM.N) that have paused advertising on Twitter since Musk took over, concerned that he will loosen content moderation rules.

Chief Privacy Officer Damien Kieran and Chief Compliance Officer Marianne Fogarty have also resigned, according to an internal message seen by Reuters. He announced plans to cut half its workforce last week, promised to stop fake accounts and is charging $8 a month for the Twitter Blue service that will include a blue check verification. "We are tracking recent developments at Twitter with deep concern," Douglas Farrar, the FTC's director of public affairs, told Reuters. "Elon puts rockets into space, he's not afraid of the FTC," the attorney quoted Spiro as saying. Twitter did not respond to a request for comment on the FTC warning, the note from the attorney or the departures.

[1/2] The iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are displayed at the Apple Fifth Avenue store, in Manhattan, New York City U.S. September 16, 2022. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File PhotoNov 9 (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O) and Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) were accused in an antitrust lawsuit on Wednesday of conspiring to drive up iPhone and iPad prices by removing nearly all other resellers of new Apple products from Amazon's website. Prices rose more than 10%, while Apple stabilized the prices it charged in retail stores, the complaint said. The combined product revenue of Cupertino, California-based Apple and Seattle-based Amazon topped $125 billion in this year's third quarter. Last month, an Italian administrative court scrapped a 173.3 million euro ($173.6 million) fine against Apple and Amazon by Italy's antitrust regulator for alleged price collusion.

☆ Microsoft's president warns of talent shortage for tackling climate change
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 2 (Reuters) - Thousands of businesses will fail to meet pledges to combat climate change unless they start training employees on sustainability, Microsoft Corp's (MSFT.O) President Brad Smith told Reuters. Microsoft sells software for organizations to track their environmental impact. Still, companies need more than technology to address global warming, said Smith, announcing plans to develop green education materials including on LinkedIn, which Microsoft owns. The findings primarily stemmed from interviews and surveys with Microsoft and eight other large companies in sectors such as finance and consumer goods. "Employers really need to step back and take a broader look at their investment in employee learning and training."

☆ In Europe, consumer businesses like Amazon face holiday reckoning
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The extraordinary plummet put Europe in the spotlight for a company typically hurting from expansion in more emerging markets. Brian Olsavsky, Amazon's chief financial officer, told reporters: "Fuel cost and the impacts of the Ukraine war are hitting the economies in Europe even harder than the U.S., and that's showing up in consumer spend." "Consumer sentiment in Europe is at an all time low," Unilever PLC (ULVR.L) Chief Financial Officer Graeme Pitkethly told reporters, warning likewise of rising inflation and depleted household savings. Mastercard Inc's (MA.N) chief financial officer said Thursday that the credit card provider so far noticed little change in European consumer spending volumes. Still, a wide range of multinational companies have warned of weakness in European markets.

Cloud services for years has been one of the largest and most dependable sources of growth for some of the biggest tech companies, including during the pandemic as people worked and studied from home. Growth in Amazon Web Services (AWS), the firm's lucrative cloud unit serving enterprises, has ticked down consistently in the past four quarters, adjusted for changes in forex. "The AWS slowdown is a clear sign that businesses are beginning to trim costs, so this will likely put more of a squeeze on Amazon's bottom line in the coming quarters," said Andrew Lipsman, principal analyst at Insider Intelligence. Alphabet's Google Cloud revenue grew 38% in the quarter, beating estimates. Cloud services typically help companies save money so budget cuts in this sector could be especially worrying, indicating that companies think cost is king going into tougher times.

Oct 27 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) on Thursday forecast a slowdown in sales growth for the holiday season, disappointing Wall Street and warning that inflation-wary consumers and businesses had less money to spend. In a call with reporters, Amazon Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky said the company was bracing for slower economic growth. Amazon forecast net sales of between $140 billion and $148 billion, or growth as little as 2% from a year earlier. The Amazon logo is seen at the company's logistics centre in Boves, France, October 6, 2021 REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol/File PhotoPrior holiday quarter sales growth was 9% in 2021 and 38% in 2020. Amazon's cloud sales growth has ticked down consistently in the past year.

The Amazon logo is seen outside its JFK8 distribution center in Staten Island, New York, U.S. November 25, 2020. In a filing, Attorney General Letitia James agreed not to seek review of a May state court decision that had found federal law preempted her claims that Amazon violated state labor statutes. She had alleged in Feb. 2021 that Amazon had retaliated against two New York City workers protesting warehouse safety conditions. As part of the agreement, Amazon withdrew its own lawsuit against New York state, which had alleged James overstepped her bounds in pandemic dealings with the retailer. The court’s prior dismissal of the New York Attorney General’s lawsuit, and today’s agreement to end the litigation altogether, is the right outcome given our actions in response to the pandemic."

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