London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Jeff Bezos responds to employee question about his resignation as CEO, says Amazon can 'out-survive any individual in the company, including, of course, myself'

Jeff Bezos responds to employee question about his resignation as CEO, says Amazon can 'out-survive any individual in the company, including, of course, myself'

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos reassured employees on Tuesday that his resignation would not end up hurting Amazon's culture or internal framework.
Jeff Bezos wants Amazon employees to know that he's not leaving the company when he steps down as CEO later this year — and that the retailer's culture is built to outlast any individual departures, including his own.

At an internal, all-staff meeting on Tuesday, which was reviewed by Insider, Bezos reiterated that he would be involved in product development work in his new role as executive chairman, which he will move into in the third quarter of 2021. Though it's a message that he shared in his February announcement, Bezos made clear again during the meeting that his passion for invention is what drove the decision to take his new position.

"The heart of what gets me up in the morning is invention — I'm an inventor at heart," Bezos said during the meeting, which was held virtually due to the pandemic. "And so I'm going to spend time as Amazon's executive chair in that role, helping with new product initiatives, helping other people inside the company own their invention skills."

Amazon holds these all-staff meetings, which are broadcast to most of the company's 1.3 million employees worldwide, only twice per year. This meeting is likely Bezos's last as CEO.

On the surface, Bezos's new role is not too different from what he's been doing the last several years. As Amazon grew into a massive company involved in all types of businesses, Bezos started spending less time on the day-to-day operations in recent years, focusing on more long-term projects, like secretive hardware initiatives and his space company Blue Origin.

But with the pandemic disrupting Amazon's supply chain and increased public scrutiny over its business practices, Bezos had returned to a more engaged role over the past year, often directly overseeing the company's response, as Insider previously reported.

The new executive chairman role will allow Bezos to hand off the most onerous parts of being Amazon's CEO, such as testifying before Congress in response to antitrust allegations, while still having fun as part of the company's most interesting projects. Andy Jassy, the CEO of the Amazon Web Services cloud business, will take over Bezos's job in the third quarter.

During Tuesday's meeting, Bezos also reassured employees that his resignation will not end up hurting Amazon's culture and internal framework. He said Amazon's famous leadership principles, which is used internally to drive almost every key decision, and a "deep leadership team" in place will continue to keep the company growing, even after he ultimately leaves.

"We've been working for decades to build a lasting company, one that can out-survive any individual in the company, including, of course, myself," Bezos said. "We have a culture and a set of principles which can guide us ... When we stick to these things, this company has a long, long runway."
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×