Over 1,000 Amazon Workers Warn the Company’s AI Strategy Is Putting Democracy, Jobs and the Planet at Risk
An explosive internal letter reveals deep frustration over layoffs, data-centre expansion and what employees call “slop” AI tools
More than 1,000 Amazon workers have anonymously signed an open letter accusing the company of pursuing a reckless, all-costs AI strategy that they fear could damage democracy, accelerate climate risks and undermine their own jobs.
According to Wired, signatures began circulating last month. By the time the organisers went public, staff across engineering, product, marketing and Amazon warehouses had added their names.
Another 2,400 supporters from outside companies, including Apple and Google, joined in.
The workers argue that Amazon’s aggressive push into generative AI, fuelled by billions of dollars in new data-centre construction, is already creating harm.
They say the company is leaning on AI to justify layoffs, push unrealistic productivity targets and expand surveillance capabilities.
Several long-tenured staff describe internal AI tools as unreliable and underdeveloped. Some engineers reported pressure to double their output using systems they consider technically inadequate.
The letter urges Amazon to address the environmental cost of its data-centre boom by committing to carbon-free power and to prevent its AI models from being used for deportation, mass surveillance or other state actions.
It also calls for the creation of ethical AI working groups staffed by employees from across the organisation, giving rank-and-file workers a direct say in how emerging technologies are deployed.
The group behind the effort, Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, has a history of pushing the company to toughen its commitments. They argue that Amazon’s emissions have risen significantly since 2019 and that the company has not provided a credible plan to reach net-zero by 2040.
Workers were particularly alarmed by an executive comment at a recent all-hands meeting predicting data-centre demand would rise tenfold by 2027, while water-usage cuts would be limited to single-digit percentages.
Amazon says it remains committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions and improving operational sustainability, but did not address concerns raised about internal AI systems or how its technology could be used externally. Employees behind the letter say they are not anti-AI.
They want a slower, more deliberate approach that prioritises climate stability, worker protection and democratic safeguards at a moment when political scrutiny is tightening and the consequences of rapid automation are already being felt.
