Amazon Loses Key Executive Overseeing Generative AI Development
Amazon’s cloud computing division, Amazon Web Services (AWS), has lost a key executive responsible for overseeing generative artificial intelligence (AI) development and the company’s Bedrock service. Vasi Philomin, who had been with Amazon for eight years, left the company earlier in June for an undisclosed new job.
Philomin had played a crucial role in leading generative AI efforts and product strategy at AWS. He was also instrumental in overseeing foundation models known as Amazon Titan. Rajesh Sheth, a vice president previously in charge of Amazon Elastic Block Store, has taken over some of Philomin’s responsibilities.
The departure comes as Amazon is working to strengthen its position in AI development, a field where rivals like OpenAI and Google have taken an early lead. Amazon has invested $8 billion in AI startup Anthropic and integrated its Claude software into its own products, including a revamped version of its voice assistant Alexa.
In recent months, Amazon has made significant strides in AI development. In December, it introduced its Nova AI models, which can generate text, video, and images. Earlier this year, it added a new model called Sonic, capable of producing more natural-sounding speech.
The competition for AI talent is intensifying, with companies using innovative methods to identify and hire top talent. This has led to a significant increase in compensation for some AI professionals. However, Amazon’s CEO Andy Jassy recently noted that the company’s success in AI development is likely to lead to fewer corporate jobs, as AI takes over tasks that were previously performed by humans.
“As we roll out more Generative AI and agents, it should change the way our work is done. We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today and more people doing other types of jobs,” Jassy wrote in a memo.
