Amazon engineers in Seattle slam employer for building AI data centers while laying off 30,000 staffers
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A group of Amazon engineers appeared at Seattle City Council hearings on Wednesday to throw their support behind efforts to regulate the development of giant AI data centers in the area, which are getting constructed while their employer is engaged in mass layoffs.
Key facts
A report from Data Center Watch found that in 2025, at least $156 billion in data center projects were blocked or delayed amid local opposition and litigation
It's been reported that this year, Amazon is spending $200 billion dollars on capital, with most of it going to data centers and AI," Patrick Schloesser, a software engineer at Amazon Web Services
In February, Amazon announced it plans to spend $200 billion on capital expenditures this year, with most that going toward AI infrastructure
Amazon, Microsoft, Google parent Alphabet, and Meta have committed roughly $700 billion this year to capital expenditures, mostly for AI infrastructure
Summary
"It's been reported that this year, Amazon is spending $200 billion dollars on capital, with most of it going to data centers and AI," Patrick Schloesser, a software engineer at Amazon Web Services, said at a hearing. An Amazon spokesperson told CNBC that the company respects its colleagues' right to voice their opinions. Officials in Seattle voted to approve a one-year moratorium on new large-scale artificial intelligence data centers to allow time for the city to regulate the projects. "Currently, we don't have any plans to construct data centers within the Seattle city limits," the Amazon spokesperson said.