History of Amazon Timeline

(July 5, 1994 - Present)

Amazon is an American multinational technology company founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 as an online bookstore. It grew into one of the world's largest e-commerce platforms and cloud computing providers through Amazon Web Services, expanding into streaming, artificial intelligence, smart devices, and logistics, becoming one of the most valuable companies in the world. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Founding and Early Years

Bezos leaves D. E. Shaw to start a company

1994

In 1994, Jeff Bezos left his job as a vice president at D. E. Shaw & Co., a Wall Street hedge fund, to pursue the opportunity of building an online business, ultimately leading him to found Amazon.

Image source: Jeff Bezos

Bezos' parents invest nearly $245,573

1994

Bezos' parents invested almost $245,573 (equivalent to $518,900 in 2025) in the start-up, providing crucial early funding that helped launch Amazon.

Image source: History of Amazon

Amazon founded in Bellevue garage

Jul 5, 1994

Amazon was founded by Jeff Bezos from his garage in Bellevue, Washington, on July 5, 1994, beginning as an online bookstore with ambitions far beyond selling books.

Image source: Amazon (company)

Company incorporated as Cadabra, Inc

Jul 5, 1994

On July 5, 1994, Bezos initially incorporated the company in Washington state under the name Cadabra, Inc., before later adopting the name Amazon.

Amazon opens as an online bookseller

Jul 16, 1995

On July 16, 1995, Amazon opened as an online bookseller, offering the world's largest collection of books to anyone with World Wide Web access.

Company announces itself to the public

Oct 1995

In October 1995, the company announced itself to the public, marking its formal introduction as an online retailer after months of operating quietly.

Reincorporated in Delaware

1996

In 1996, Amazon was reincorporated in Delaware, a common move for companies seeking favorable corporate legal structures as they grow.

Barnes & Noble sues Amazon

May 12, 1997

On May 12, 1997, Barnes & Noble sued Amazon, alleging that Amazon's claim to be "the world's largest bookstore" was false because it "...wasn't a bookstore at all."

Growth and Expansion

Initial public offering on NASDAQ

May 15, 1997

Amazon issued its initial public offering of capital stock on May 15, 1997, at $18 per share, on the NASDAQ stock exchange under the symbol AMZN.

Amazon begins offering music

Jun 1998

In June 1998, the company began to offer music, expanding beyond books and taking a major step toward becoming a broad online retailer.

Walmart sues Amazon over trade secrets

Oct 16, 1998

Walmart sued Amazon on October 16, 1998, alleging that Amazon had stolen Walmart's trade secrets by hiring former Walmart executives.

First publishing venture with Weathervane imprint

1999

In 1999, Amazon first attempted to enter the publishing business by buying a defunct imprint, "Weathervane", and publishing books "selected with no apparent thought", according to The New Yorker. The imprint quickly vanished again, and as of 2014 Amazon representatives said they had never heard of it.

Smile logo introduced

Oct 1999 - Feb 2000

Between October 1999 and February 2000, Amazon's logotype came to feature a curved arrow leading from A to Z, representing that the company carries every product from A to Z, with the arrow shaped like a smile.

Amazon survives the dot-com bubble burst

2001

In 2001, the dot-com bubble burst, destroying many e-companies in the process, but Amazon survived and moved forward beyond the tech crash to become a huge player in online sales.

Image source: Dot-com bubble

First quarterly profit recorded

1 Oct 2001 - 31 Dec 2001

The company finally turned its first profit in the fourth quarter of 2001: $0.01 (i.e., 1¢ per share), on revenues of more than $1 billion.

Purchases .buy top level domain

2014

In 2014, Amazon purchased the top level domain .buy in auction for over $4 million, securing valuable digital real estate for future commerce ventures.

Fire Phone launched

2014

In 2014, Amazon launched the Fire Phone, its entry into the smartphone market, though the device ultimately failed to gain significant market traction.

Image source: Fire Phone

HQ2 second headquarters search announced

Sep 2016

In September 2016, Amazon announced plans to locate a second headquarters in a metropolitan area with at least a million people, sparking a nationwide competition among cities.

Image source: Amazon HQ2

HQ2 bid submissions deadline

Oct 19, 2017

Cities needed to submit their presentations by October 19, 2017, for the project called HQ2, drawing proposals from more than 200 North American cities.

Retail market share reported by Bloomberg

Aug 8, 2018

According to an August 8, 2018, story in Bloomberg Businessweek, Amazon held about a 5% share of US retail spending (excluding cars, car parts, and visits to restaurants and bars), and a 43.5% share of online spending in the U.S., with forecasts pointing to 49% of total American online spending in 2018.

HQ2 winners announced: Queens and Arlington

Nov 2018

In November 2018, Amazon announced it would open its highly sought-after new headquarters, known as HQ2, in Long Island City, Queens, New York City, and in the Crystal City neighborhood of Arlington County, Virginia.

National Landing HQ2 investment plan

Feb 2019 - 2030

The company plans to locate at least 25,000 employees at HQ2 by 2030 and will invest more than US$2.5 billion to establish its new headquarters in Crystal City as well as neighboring Pentagon City and Potomac Yard, an area jointly marketed as "National Landing." The announcement also created a new partnership with Virginia Tech University to develop an Innovation Campus to fill the demand for high-tech talent in National Landing and beyond.

Amazon cancels HQ2 plans in Queens

Feb 14, 2019

On February 14, 2019, Amazon announced it was not moving forward with plans to build HQ2 in Queens but would instead focus solely on the Arlington location.

$386 billion in US e-commerce sales

2020

Amazon generated $386 billion in US retail e-commerce sales in 2020, up 38% over 2019, as the pandemic accelerated the shift to online shopping.

Workforce and Operations

30,000 full-time US employees

2011

In 2011, Amazon had 30,000 full-time employees in the US, reflecting the company's rapid growth in operations and fulfillment infrastructure.

180,000 employees by end of 2016

Dec 31, 2016

By the end of 2016, Amazon had grown to 180,000 employees, a sixfold increase from five years earlier, driven by expansion of its retail, cloud, and logistics businesses.

New Seattle building for Mary's Place charity

2017 - 2020

In 2017, Amazon announced it would build a new downtown Seattle building with space for Mary's Place, a local homeless charity, which opened in 2020.

Image source: The Rising (album)

Over 566,000 employees worldwide

Dec 31, 2017

At the end of 2017, Amazon had over 566,000 employees worldwide, reflecting explosive growth across its retail, cloud computing, and logistics operations.

Last-mile delivery program with Mercedes-Benz vans

Sep 2018

Amazon launched the last-mile delivery program and ordered 20,000 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Vans for the service in September 2018, expanding its in-house delivery capabilities.

Image source: Prime Now

Staten Island warehouse walkout

Mar 2020

At the end of March 2020, some workers of the Staten Island warehouse staged a walkout in protest of the poor health situation at their workplace amidst the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

Image source: Amazon Labor Union

Warehouses stop accepting non-essential items

Mar 17, 2020 - Apr 10, 2020

From March 17 to April 10, 2020, Amazon warehouses stopped accepting non-essential items from third-party sellers to prioritize medical supplies and household staples during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Image source: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the environment

Plans to lay off 10,000 employees announced

Nov 14, 2022

On November 14, 2022, it was announced that Amazon had plans to lay off 10,000 employees among its corporate and technology staff amid cost-cutting measures.

Layoffs increased to 18,000

Jan 2023

The number of planned layoffs increased to 18,000 in a January 2023 announcement, one of the largest workforce reductions in the company's history.

Testing humanoid robots in warehouses

2023

With more than one million workers employed in warehouses around the world, Amazon in 2023 started testing humanoid robots that provide partial automation of its work tasks.

Physical Retail

Amazon Go pilot for employees

Dec 2016

Amazon Go was initially opened for Amazon employees in December 2016, testing its cashierless checkout technology before opening to the general public.

Image source: Amazon Go

Amazon Go opens to the public

Jan 22, 2018

On January 22, 2018, Amazon Go, a store that uses cameras and sensors to detect items that a shopper grabs off shelves and automatically charges their Amazon account, was opened to the general public in Seattle.

First Amazon 4-star store debuts in SoHo

Sep 27, 2018

Amazon announced it would debut the Amazon 4-star store in the Soho neighborhood of New York City on Spring Street between Crosby and Lafayette on September 27, 2018, selling highly rated products from its online marketplace.

Eight Amazon Go stores operating

Dec 31, 2018

By the end of 2018, Amazon was operating a total of 8 Amazon Go stores located in Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco and New York.

Two 4-star stores open in the UK

Oct 1, 2021 - Dec 31, 2021

In late 2021, Amazon opened two 4-star stores in the United Kingdom, extending the concept internationally.

All 4-star, Books, and Pop Up stores closing

Mar 2022

In March 2022, Amazon announced that it would be closing all 4-star stores, along with their Books and Pop Up stores, across the US and the UK, stating that they were refocusing on their grocery and fashion stores.

Amazon Go reaches 23 locations

Aug 2024

As of August 2024, Amazon Go had 23 locations in New York, California, Washington, and Illinois, continuing its gradual expansion of cashierless stores.

Acquisitions and Partnerships

Agreement to acquire Whole Foods announced

Jun 2017

In June 2017, Amazon announced that it would acquire Whole Foods, a high-end supermarket chain with over 400 stores, for $13.4 billion, marking its biggest push into brick-and-mortar retail.

Image source: Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods deal approved

Aug 23, 2017

On August 23, 2017, Whole Foods shareholders, as well as the Federal Trade Commission, approved the deal, clearing the way for Amazon's acquisition of the grocery chain.

Negotiations to acquire MGM begin

May 17, 2021

After months of speculation due to MGM's poor financial performance from the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the movie industry, Amazon entered negotiations to acquire MGM at an estimated $9 billion on May 17, 2021.

Image source: MGM Holdings

MGM merger deal agreed at $8.45 billion

May 26, 2021

The companies agreed to the merger deal on May 26, 2021, for a total value of $8.45 billion, subject to regulatory approval.

MGM acquisition finalized

Mar 17, 2022

The merger was finalized on March 17, 2022, following the expiration of the FTC's review deadline and having cleared the European Commission two days earlier on March 15.

Town halls detail MGM's post-merger future

Mar 18, 2022

Two town halls further detailing MGM's future post-merger took place on March 18, 2022, which included one for MGM employees and one for Amazon Studios/Prime Video employees.

De Luca and Abdy leave the studio

Apr 27, 2022

On April 27, 2022, it was announced that Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy would leave the studio following Amazon's acquisition of MGM.

Image source: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Strategic partnership with Anthropic

Sep 25, 2023

On September 25, 2023, Amazon and artificial intelligence startup Anthropic announced a strategic partnership in which Amazon would become a minority stakeholder by investing up to US$4 billion, including an immediate investment of $1.25 billion.

Key Facts

Amazon was founded by Jeff Bezos on July 5, 1994, in Bellevue, Washington, originally operating out of his garage as an online bookstore called Cadabra.
The company went public on May 15, 1997, trading on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol AMZN.
Amazon Prime launched in 2005, offering free two-day shipping for a flat annual fee, which became a major driver of customer loyalty and sales growth.
Amazon Web Services (AWS), launched in 2006, pioneered modern cloud computing and became one of Amazon's most profitable business segments.
In 2017, Amazon acquired Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion, marking its major entry into brick-and-mortar grocery retail.

Source

This History of Amazon timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

We work hard to keep these timelines accurate, but mistakes do get through. If you spot one, email us at [email protected] and we'll fix it for future visitors.

Want a timeline like this one?

Generate yours with AI or build it from scratch, for free.

Try It for Free