Bezos first started Amazon in 1995 as an online bookseller and has led it through its growth into the $1.7 trillion global retail and logistics company that it is today. According to his Wednesday letter to employees, Bezos will be focusing on “new products and early initiatives” in his new position. “As Exec Chair I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, The Washington Post, and my other passions.”
New CEO Andy Jassy has been with the company almost as long as Bezos, coming aboard in 1997. As CEO of Amazon Web Services, Jassy has overseen the growth of that arm of the company into the biggest cloud computing provider in the world. In announcing his appointment, Bezos said Jassy “will be an outstanding leader, and he has my full confidence.”
