Amazon is preparing for another round of corporate job cuts that underscores how deeply the company is reshaping itself after years of expansion, even as its leadership offers shifting explanations around artificial intelligence, culture, and long-term strategy.

According to two people familiar with the matter who spoke to Reuters, Amazon plans to begin a second wave of layoffs as early as next week, with the scale expected to roughly match the cuts announced in October. That earlier round eliminated about 14,000 white-collar roles, putting the company roughly halfway toward a broader plan to reduce close to 30,000 corporate positions.

If the latest cuts go ahead as outlined, Amazon will have completed one of its most sweeping restructurings outside the pandemic period.

The layoffs are expected to affect several of Amazon’s most prominent units, including Amazon Web Services, the core retail business, Prime Video, and the human resources division known internally as People Experience and Technology. The widespread nature of affected teams suggests the exercise is not a targeted response to a single underperforming unit, but a cross-company effort to shrink layers of management and rethink how work gets done across the organization.

People familiar with the plans cautioned that details could still change, reflecting the uncertainty that has become a hallmark of Amazon’s internal planning in recent years.

When Amazon announced the October cuts, the company pointed directly to artificial intelligence, telling employees in an internal note that “this generation of AI is the most transformative technology we’ve seen since the Internet.” The message echoed a broader narrative across the technology sector, where companies have increasingly tied job reductions to the efficiency gains promised by generative AI and automation, particularly for corporate and support roles.

Yet that explanation was later tempered by Chief Executive Andy Jassy, who told analysts on the company’s third-quarter earnings call that the layoffs were “not really financially driven and it’s not even really AI-driven.” Instead, he framed the reductions as cultural, aimed at addressing what he described as excessive bureaucracy and too many layers of management that had built up during Amazon’s rapid hiring over the past decade.

This means the two accounts point to a more nuanced reality. AI may not be directly replacing tens of thousands of jobs at Amazon, but it is clearly influencing how leadership thinks about productivity, staffing, and scale.

Tools that automate reporting, customer support, internal analytics, and parts of software development make it easier to justify leaner teams, even if executives stop short of saying AI is the primary driver. At the same time, Jassy’s focus on culture signals frustration with slower decision-making and internal complexity as Amazon grew into one of the world’s largest employers.

The timing of the cuts also reflects broader pressures on the business. Growth at AWS, long Amazon’s profit engine, has slowed compared with its earlier years, even as competition in cloud computing intensifies, and capital spending on AI infrastructure accelerates. Prime Video continues to absorb high content costs, while the retail business operates on tight margins in many markets. Trimming corporate headcount offers a way to contain costs while preserving investment in strategic priorities such as AI chips, data centers, and logistics automation.

The latest planned cuts add to a prolonged period of instability for employees. Since late 2022, Amazon has announced multiple rounds of layoffs across devices, retail, advertising, cloud, and HR, eroding the perception that any team is insulated from restructuring. Even business units seen as central to Amazon’s future have faced reductions, reinforcing the sense that efficiency, rather than growth alone, now defines the company’s internal calculus.

More broadly, Amazon’s move mirrors a shift across Big Tech, where companies are trying to reconcile massive spending on AI with demands from investors for discipline and returns. Framing layoffs around culture rather than profits or automation allows executives to position the changes as strategic and proactive, even as they acknowledge that the era of unchecked hiring is over.

If the coming round proceeds as expected, it will further cement a reset underway under Jassy: flatter teams, fewer managers, and a workforce shaped by both technological change and a deliberate push to remake how the company operates.

Apple is preparing its most far-reaching redesign of Siri since the voice assistant debuted more than a decade ago, signaling a strategic shift as the company races to catch up with rivals that have moved faster and louder in generative artificial intelligence.

According to Bloomberg News, Apple plans to revamp Siri later this year by turning it into the company’s first true AI chatbot. The new system, internally code-named Campos, will be embedded deeply across iPhone, iPad, and Mac operating systems, effectively replacing the current Siri interface. People familiar with the matter said the redesigned assistant will support both voice and text-based interactions and serve as a central feature of Apple’s next major software releases.

The move reflects growing urgency inside Apple following the muted reception of its “Apple Intelligence” rollout in 2024. While the company framed that launch around privacy, on-device processing, and selective AI features, it struggled to generate the momentum enjoyed by competitors such as OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft, whose chatbots quickly became everyday tools for consumers and businesses.

Campos is designed to address that gap. Rather than responding to short commands or queries, the new Siri is expected to handle more conversational exchanges, reason across tasks, and operate more seamlessly across apps and system functions. Bloomberg described it as a shift from an assistant that reacts to instructions to one that can act as a continuous interface between users and their devices.

Central to that ambition is Apple’s decision to rely more heavily on external AI technology. Earlier this month, the company struck a deal with Google to use its Gemini models to power Siri, a notable departure for Apple, which has traditionally emphasized in-house development of core technologies. Under the plan outlined in the report, Campos will run on a higher-end version of Google’s model, comparable to Gemini 3, known internally as Apple Foundation Models version 11.

The partnership gives Alphabet a significant win, embedding its AI models inside Apple’s ecosystem of more than a billion active devices worldwide. For Apple, it underscores a pragmatic recalibration. Rather than waiting to fully close the gap with its own large language models, the company appears willing to integrate best-in-class technology to accelerate its AI roadmap and remain competitive.

People familiar with the project told Bloomberg that the chatbot capabilities will roll out later this year and that Campos will be the most prominent addition to Apple’s upcoming operating systems. The expectation inside the company is that Siri will evolve from a standalone feature into a system-level layer that can interact more fluidly with apps, files, settings, and services, potentially changing how users navigate Apple devices.

Siri has long been seen as lagging behind competitors in accuracy, flexibility, and usefulness, becoming a symbol of Apple’s slower pace in conversational AI. Investors and developers have increasingly questioned whether Apple’s cautious approach has cost it valuable ground in a market now defined by rapid iteration and scale.

At the same time, Apple is exploring how AI could extend beyond traditional devices. Separately, The Information reported that the company is developing an AI-powered wearable pin equipped with multiple cameras, microphones, a speaker, and wireless charging. The device, which could be released as early as 2027, would place Apple in a growing field of AI-first hardware experiments aimed at creating always-on, context-aware computing experiences.

Taken together, the Siri overhaul and the reported wearable project suggest Apple is entering a more aggressive phase in its AI strategy. The company appears increasingly open to partnerships and bolder product shifts as it seeks to reposition itself alongside, rather than behind, its Big Tech peers.

This also means that Campos is not just a software update for Apple. It is a test of whether the company can adapt its tightly controlled ecosystem to a world where AI-driven interfaces are becoming the primary way users interact with technology, while still preserving the reliability, integration, and user trust that have long underpinned its business.

Authors: 

• Dr. Kaze Armel, Lecturer, Xiangtan University, School of Law, China-Africa Research Institute
• Dr. LI YAN, Lecturer, Yunnan University, School of Marxism

Introduction

Africa and China have a long history of economic and political relations, dating back to the 1960’s when many African countries were gaining their independence from colonial powers. While establishing their first diplomatic relations, China has supported newly formed African states through foreign aid and investment, signaling China-Africa shared future, whether it is economically or politically. Since 2009, China has become Africa’s largest trading partner, a major source of infrastructure financing, and key player in regional and global affairs, and China’s modernization has been a source of inspiration to many countries from the Global South, especially African countries. However, in recent years, many critics have raised concerns about the nature and impact of China’s engagements in Africa, derailing China-Africa shared future willingness. Some suggest that China’s presence in Africa is mainly motivated by economic and political factors, considering that loans, grants, and infrastructure-for-resources are the main strategies for wooing Africans. Some other argue that China is exploiting remaining natural resources on the continent, others go beyond by imploring that China is creating debt traps, or undermining governance and human rights standards. Why such connotations? Is it because China has threatened colonial powers interests in Africa or is it about the overhyped debate about African countries’ high external debt problem? It is impertinent for African youth to understand those critics and take responsibility in addressing well China-Africa relations in the new era.

China-Africa Relations turned into critics: Its foundations

Ever since academics, policy makers and diplomats have been on hand to report China’s arrival on the African continent, its implications or engagements on the continent has been greeted with extremes of approval and dismay. Over the past few decades alone, there has been a spate of books, articles, studies, and commentaries, mostly in the West regarding China’s engagements in Africa. They reflect both fascination and apprehension, as they criticize China’s intake in many African countries resources share. Over the last century, many European empire-builders present on the African continent at the time applauded the import of Chinese contract laborers, who they believed would open up the continent by shouldering work on the new infrastructure such as roads and railways and in the Rand goldfields of South Africa, which their African counterparts were unwilling to perform. Others saw China’s presence as a lethal threat. They believed that Chinese laborers would slip out of their compounds, subvert the morality of the unspoilt natives, steal European jobs and businesses. In recent years, the critics practically remained the same, as China is still being seen as a threat to Europeans or post-colonial powers’ interests on the continent.

Another growing chorus of critics argue that China’s non-interference in Africa’s political affairs has done little to improve governance or uplift the lives of ordinary Africans, that somehow China is indirectly encouraging cycles of corruption, dependency, and stagnation. Apart from those critics, other argue that the growing influence of China in Africa raised concerns of Africa’s debt sustainability, environmental impact, and on top of that, support of authoritarian regimes. All these claims have overlooked China’s contribution to Africa’s recent development. A simple example is China’s willingness to fund Africa’s prestigious infrastructure such as costly expressways, railways, dams, etc. which many Western powers would not consider investing in. Many China’s funded infrastructure on the continent such as the expressway that connect Nairobi in Kenya and Kampala in Uganda; Bujumbura in Burundi to Kinshasa in DRC, etc. have actually made life easier for African elites and simple citizens. China has even moved to recalibrate its infrastructure finance by introducing the concept of “small and beautiful (???)” projects. These projects are being seen implemented on a large scale in many African countries, and no African host country can deny the huge impact of them, especially on simple African citizens. This is where African youth need to step up and bring a new light into this matter and address well China’s engagements in Africa. It is important for African youth to be good examples in painting well this picture and not be led astray by western media propaganda.

How to better address China-Africa relations critics: African Youth intake

It is impertinent for the youth, especially African youth to master the know-how in addressing China-Africa relations critics. We are living in a digital era, when it is easy to get access to information, and even more easy to be led astray by what is being perpetuated on different internet platforms. As African youth, I believe it is our responsibility to know how to get true information regarding China’s presence on the continent.

Firstly, it is important for African youth to be aware that it is not a question whether Africa is losing by engaging with China. On the contrary, Africa is actually also a winner, but it is up to Africa to know how to engage with China in a way that maximizes its benefits and minimize risks.

Secondly, it is our responsibility as African youth to address well China-Africa relations. China and Africa relations are being criticized not only by few Western media, but also by a handful of African media. African youth need to have a nuanced understanding of the opportunities and challenges that China’s growing presence on the continent bring. For instance, in trade and investment, African youth should step up and guide the narrative by supporting our African country leaders while refuting critics over China’s dept-trap allegations by addressing solutions rather than joining the unbalanced opinions perpetuated on different platforms.

Thirdly, the future of China-African relations, or even the turn of China-Africa critics narratives relies in our hand. It is up to China-Africa youth to find another way, a better way of addressing them. China-African youth connections, China-Africa youth collective efforts in handling China-Africa relations critics, whether using in a responsible way available platforms to spread well balanced China-Africa relations histories, build a more healthy and safe platforms to present our collective efforts in addressing those critics, either through academic think-tanks, or meetings or dialogues, will determine whether China-Africa relations will continue to grow even stronger.

Conclusion

China is considered as the “Asian Power”, and is likely to change its status from an emerging and developing country to a developed one. China despite being an emerging power, it is the biggest economy among all Global South, but it has never abused its power over its African counterparts, in a way, signaling its global power status, far different than what the US is showing to the African continent, for instance by bailing on the 2025 G20 meeting hosted by South Africa, imposing unbearable tariffs on African countries, or even the decision to freeze foreign aid on the continent. This should be a signal to African youth to better follow and understand where the biased China-Africa relations critics are headed. It is our responsibility as China-Africa youth to be able to distinguish what Western powers controlled media are feeding the youth on several platforms. As we live in a digital era, it is easy to be misguided by those critics, and if we are not careful, could lead us into an anti-China propaganda. China and Africa share the same values, as it is being witnessed in China’s many engagements on the continent. Even at the 2024 Beijing Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, Chinese President Xi Jinping repeatedly emphasized that China and Africa relations are now being elevated to an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era. This declaration reaffirms what China-Africa youth should be engage in hands in hands in addressing China-Africa common concerns. For now, it is important for China-Africa youth to engage together and making sure that China and Africa whether faced with geopolitical shifts, or even common issues such as climate change, peace and security, etc., China and Africa will remain each other’s trustworthy true partners.