August 27: The history of Amazon (part 5 of 5)
August 27: The history of Amazon (part 5 of 5)
The best description of what Amazon is today comes from Wikipedia.
Source: CNN, Big Commerce, Fact of the Day 1
Published: October 2018, May 2017, August 2021
The history of Amazon (part 5 of 5)
Today we wrap up the week’s highlights of Amazon’s history. The best description of what Amazon is today comes from Wikipedia: Amazon is an American multinational technology company which focuses on e-commerce, cloud computing, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence.
The common thread across Amazon’s many businesses is the culture of innovation where employees work backwards from customer needs to design delightful experiences.
2017: Amazon acquires Whole Foods Market for $13.7B. Jeff Bezos becomes the wealthiest person in the world.
2018: Amazon launches in Turkey. Amazon acquires Ring (home security) and PillPack (an online pharmacy). Amazon Prime membership fee raises from $99 to $119.
2019: Amazon sets up a second headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. Amazon co-founds the Climate Pledge—a commitment to be net-zero carbon by 2040.
2020: The Amazon brand becomes the most valuable in the world. Amazon acquires Zoox (autonomous vehicles).
2021: Jeff Bezos steps down as CEO, with Andy Jassy taking the reins. Amazon acquires MGM Studios for $8.45B.
By September 2017—just 3 months after the acquisition—Amazon was experimenting with putting Echo devices in Whole Foods stores. Photo: Reddit, u/LokiCoder
Jeff Bezos and Christiana Figueres, Former UN Climate Chief, speak to the media on The Climate Pledge and Amazon’s sustainability efforts in September 2019 in Washington, DC.
Zoox, based in Foster City in the Silicon Valley, was founded in 2014 and acquired by Amazon in June 2020. The carriage-style interior of the autonomous vehicle has two benches that face each other, without any steering wheel.
In February 2021, Jeff Bezos announced that he would step down from CEO of Amazon and that Andy Jassy would take the position. Jassy joined Amazon in 1997 and has led AWS since its inception.