Amazon is reaching out to some former employees about job opportunities in artificial intelligence, machine learning and cloud computing, as the technology company continues to reshape its workforce around emerging areas of demand.
According to emails reviewed by Business Insider and comments from an Amazon spokesperson, recruiters have contacted eligible former employees about positions across AI and cloud-related businesses. The number of people contacted and the number who have returned to Amazon have not been disclosed.
AI and AWS recruiters contact former employees
One reported outreach came in August from a recruiter working with Amazon’s AI agent organisation. The recruiter contacted former employees with experience in artificial intelligence and machine learning regarding potential opportunities.
The organisation is led by Swami Sivasubramanian, vice-president at Amazon Web Services. The recruiter reportedly referred to the outreach as the “Swami’s Boomerang Reengagement Initiative.”
In a separate case, an AWS finance recruiter reportedly contacted a former Amazon employee about an opportunity that could involve a shorter interview process. The recruiter also asked whether Amazon’s return-to-office policy had played a role in the individual’s departure.
Business Insider did not identify that employee as someone who had been laid off by Amazon.
Amazon says former employees have long been considered
Amazon has said the recent outreach should not be viewed as the launch of a new rehiring programme connected to its workforce reductions.
According to the company’s spokesperson, recruiting former employees is an established practice at Amazon and applies across different parts of the business rather than being limited to AI and cloud positions.
The company also said employees who were previously laid off can be considered for suitable vacancies.
Amazon further stated that it is not specifically targeting people who left because of its return-to-office requirements and that its existing office policy remains unchanged.
Workforce reductions continue alongside selective hiring
The outreach comes after two significant rounds of corporate workforce reductions at Amazon.
The company announced approximately 14,000 corporate job cuts in October 2025, followed by another 16,000 reductions in January 2026.
At the same time, Amazon has continued to recruit for selected areas of its business. The company’s workforce strategy therefore involves reducing positions in some functions while continuing to add employees in areas where it sees strong demand for particular skills.
AI-related capabilities are increasingly important to that strategy.
AI expected to reshape Amazon’s workforce
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy has previously said that the growing use of generative AI and AI agents will change how work is performed across the company.
In a June 2025 message to employees, Jassy said Amazon was likely to require fewer people in some types of roles while creating greater demand for other capabilities as AI adoption expands.
He also said he expected AI-driven productivity improvements to reduce Amazon’s overall corporate workforce over the following several years, while noting that the eventual impact on headcount was difficult to quantify.
A more targeted approach to hiring
The latest outreach illustrates how Amazon’s workforce strategy can involve both job reductions and recruitment at the same time.
While the company continues to reduce positions in certain areas, demand for specialised expertise in AI, machine learning and cloud computing remains part of its hiring needs.
Contacting former employees gives Amazon another potential source of experienced talent, while allowing the company to consider candidates who are already familiar with its systems, culture and operations.
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