Category Archives: Amazon

Supermarket shake-up: why Asda or Morrisons could vanish within a decade

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Talks between Sainsbury’s and Morrisons have set industry tongues wagging, with analysts saying the market is ripe for change

They may be two of the most recognisable brands in Britain, with a combined 188 years serving shoppers, but industry watchers agree that either Asda or Morrisons – or both – could disappear within a decade.

This week, it emerged that Sainsbury’s and Morrisons – the UK’s second- and sixth-largest supermarket chains – had held merger talks between last November and February, before the larger player decided to walk away.

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Pilots tried to abort landing seconds before deadly Amazon cargo plane crash that killed five

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The five people killed were employees of an aircraft cleaning company who were in a van struck by the plane after it overran the Miami airport runway

Officials in Florida on Tuesday said evidence collected from Saturday’s Amazon cargo plane crash at Miami international airport suggests the pilots considered aborting the flight’s landing before it crashed and killed five people on the ground.

At a press conference Tuesday evening, officials from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released data from the plane’s “black box” flight data recorder, which was recovered from the wreckage on Monday, indicating pilots initiated a “go-around”, or aborted landing, seconds before impact.

Reuters contributed reporting

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Federal investigators search for cause of Amazon cargo jet crash that killed five

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Focus likely on whether plane touched down too late in its glide path on to tarmac to enable it to stop safely

Federal investigators have started collecting evidence, including a flight data recorder, following the Sunday crash of an Amazon cargo jet at Miami international airport that killed five people and injured five others.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), announced a preliminary investigation into the Amazon Air flight 7598 accident involving a Boeing 767-33 Alpha operated by 21 Air, an all-cargo airline.

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Amazon cargo plane crashes at Miami airport and hits several vehicles

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FAA confirms crash and airport operations brought to a halt as videos show heavy plumes of smoke surrounding aircraft

An Amazon cargo plane crashed at Miami international airport in Florida on Sunday afternoon after the flight, which was arriving from Puerto Rico, overshot the runway, striking several vehicles and erupting in flames as dark smoke billowed into the sky, bringing operations at one of the busiest airports in the US to a halt.

Videos posted online show heavy plumes of smoke surrounding an aircraft bearing the Amazon arrow logo on its tail. Unconfirmed reports suggest there may be casualties, but details about injuries or fatalities remained unclear.

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Which? finds 150 potentially lethal baby products sold online

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UK consumer group says lives are at risk because platforms fail to prevent dangerous items reaching customers

Babies are being put at risk by dozens of potentially lethal infant products sold to UK parents on major online marketplaces, an investigation has found.

The consumer champion Which? identified 150 products, including self-feeding prop feeders that pose a choking risk and baby sleep pillows linked to suffocation.

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‘Fork in the road’: CEO of Amazon-backed Rivian on why carmakers need to invest in EVs

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RJ Scaringe says firms focused on selling fossil fuel engines risk being ‘woefully behind’ on technology by end of decade

Carmakers that focus on selling fossil fuel engines are at risk of being “woefully behind” on technology by the end of the decade, according to the boss of Rivian, an Amazon-backed US electric carmaker.

RJ Scaringe, Rivian’s founder and chief executive, said the car industry has reached a “fork in the road” in the choice between short-term profits and the heavy investments, particularly in software, that will be required to survive.

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Global brands ‘likely’ using mineral that funds rebels accused of atrocities in DRC, investigation finds

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Amazon and Sony among firms that may have sourced coltan, used in phones, from supply chains controlled by the M23 rebels, says Global Witness

Leading global brands including Amazon, Ericsson and Sony are “likely” to have sourced minerals linked to a militia accused of widespread sexual violence, summary executions and torture, a new investigation claims.

The companies allegedly, but unknowingly, acquired coltan smuggled from mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that are occupied by the M23 militia, which has committed myriad atrocities in eastern DRC.

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Amazon halts sales of illegal high-speed ebikes in California after fatal crashes

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Recent consumer alert on ebike safety laws says some vehicles should be classified as mopeds or motorcycles

Amazon said it plans to stop selling certain high-speed electric bicycles in California after a string of high-profile incidents and a consumer alert that the state attorney general issued last month.

In April an 81-year-old man in Orange county died after a teenager illegally riding an e-motorcycle struck him. The teen’s mother, Tommi Jo Mejer, has since been charged with involuntary manslaughter in Ed Ashman’s death as officials say she was warned it was illegal for her son to operate the vehicle.

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Starmer adviser held 16 undisclosed meetings with top US tech bosses

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Exclusive: Varun Chandra’s talks with Google, Meta, Apple and others raise fears of ‘lobbying behind closed doors’

An influential government adviser close to Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves held 16 undisclosed meetings with top US tech executives, the Guardian can reveal.

The No 10 business aide Varun Chandra discussed regulatory changes, AI and Donald Trump’s second administration with tech corporations during confidential meetings between October 2024 and October 2025. In one meeting he offered to help a top executive meet the prime minister directly.

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Jeff in Venice: seven takeaways from the Bezos-Sánchez wedding

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What we learned from the billionaire’s three-day, celebrity-studded nuptials which created a stir in Venice

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and journalist Lauren Sánchez held their wedding ceremony in Venice’s Grand canal on Friday, the centrepiece of a three-day gala that drew dozens of stars but also protests by local activists. Here are seven takeaways.

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Amazon boss tells staff AI means their jobs are at risk in coming years

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Andrew Jassy tells white collar workers that such technology means fewer people will be needed for some jobs

The boss of Amazon has told white collar staff at the e-commerce company their jobs could be taken by artificial intelligence in the next few years.

Andrew Jassy told employees that AI agents – tools that carry out tasks autonomously – and generative AI systems such as chatbots would require fewer employees in certain areas.

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Amazon ‘testing humanoid robots to deliver packages’

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Tech firm is building ‘humanoid park’ in US to try out robots, which could ‘spring out’ of its vans

Amazon is reportedly developing software for humanoid robots that could perform the role of delivery workers and “spring out” of its vans.

The $2tn technology company is building a “humanoid park” in the US to test the robots, said the tech news site the Information, citing a person who had been involved in the project.

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US media stocks slide on Wall Street after Trump threatens movie tariffs

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Netflix, Amazon, Warner Bros Discovery and Paramount shares fall as studios reel from announcement

Shares in US streamers and production companies fell on Monday, after Donald Trump said he would introduce 100% tariffs on films made abroad, a move that couldsharply raise costs for Hollywood studios.

Trump’s announcement on his Truth Social platform, revived worries about the US president’s trade policy and its impact on the world economy.

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Amazon reports better-than-expected earnings despite tumult of Trump tariffs

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Company exceeds expectations for third quarter in a row as chief executive Andy Jassy admits uncertainty over tariffs

Amazon reported strong first-quarter earnings for the 2025 fiscal year on Thursday after the New York stock exchange closed – results that will be seen in the context of consumer resilience in the face of Donald Trump’s tariff wars.

Amazon reported $1.59 in earnings-per-share (EPS) and revenue of $155.67bn. Analysts had estimated that the company’s EPS would come in at $1.36 on revenue of $155bn. In particular focus: Amazon’s advertising business, which grew 19% in the first quarter of 2025, handily exceeding analyst expectations as well. The company has exceeded Wall Street’s expectations for the previous two quarters.

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Celebrities criticize all-female rocket launch: ‘This is beyond parody’

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Amy Schumer, Olivia Wilde and Olivia Munn are among the famous names calling out the much-publicised space trip

The all-female Blue Origin rocket launch may have received plenty of glowing media coverage – but not everyone is impressed.

The stunt has drawn criticism from a number of female celebrities who were not keen on the Jeff Bezos-owned Blue Origin NS-31 mission, which included Katy Perry, Bezos’s fiancee Lauren Sanchez, aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, film producer Kerianne Flynn and, in a twist straight out of Apple TV’s The Morning Show, CBS Mornings host Gayle King.

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‘Silicon Six’ accused of avoiding almost $278bn in US corporation taxes over 10 years

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Analysis finds Amazon, Meta, Alphabet, Netflix, Apple and Microsoft averaged 18.8%, compared with 29.7% US average

The big American tech firms known as the “Silicon Six” have been accused of paying almost $278bn (£211bn) less corporate income tax in the past decade compared with the statutory rate for US companies making the same profits.

Amazon, Meta, Alphabet, Netflix, Apple and Microsoft generated $11tn of revenue and $2.5tn of profits over the past 10 years.

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Exclusive: 20% of Americans support boycott of firms aligning themselves with Trump agenda

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New poll also shows that a significant share of Americans will avoid companies that drop social-inclusion policies

One in five Americans plan to turn their backs for good on companies that have shifted their policies to align with Donald Trump’s agenda, according to a new poll for the Guardian.

As high-profile brands including Amazon, Target and Tesla grapple with economic boycotts, research by the Harris Poll indicated the backlash could have a lasting impact.

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Fired FTC commissioner raises concern over Trump ties to tech billionaires

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Alvaro Bedoya points to ‘interesting coincidence’ that he was dismissed after criticizing Amazon’s Jeff Bezos

A day after his abrupt firing by Donald Trump from the Federal Trade Commission, Alvaro Bedoya raised questions about the US president’s relations with some of the country’s richest men.

Appearing at a hearing of the joint judiciary committee of the state legislature in Colorado on Wednesday, the ousted Democratic commissioner said it was an “interesting coincidence” his final public statement in post had blasted Jeff Bezos, the Amazon founder.

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UK marketplace sellers face ‘second Brexit’ hit from Trump’s US import rules

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End of ‘de minimis’ policy for Chinese goods also expected to hit bigger fashion retailers such as Asos and Boohoo

Many UK-based independent sellers on marketplaces such as eBay and Amazon could suffer a significant hit to US sales from planned changes to import rules under Donald Trump, with experts comparing the impact to a second Brexit.

The new rules, which mean all parcels originating or made in China and being sold into the US must pay import duty – of as much as 15% on fashion items – and an additional 10% tariff, are also expected to impact bigger online clothing retailers such as Asos and Boohoo.

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Amazon accused of targeting Coventry union members after failed recognition vote

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GMB says 60 workers have been targeted, with disciplinary action increasing significantly, but company denies claims

Amazon has been accused of targeting 60 trade union members with disciplinary action after narrowly defeating a recognition vote at its Coventry warehouse last summer.

The GMB trade union said all 60 workers were involved in action at the warehouse – where it has about 700 members out of a workforce of at least 1,500 – that culminated in a ballot on formal recognition in July last year that failed by only a handful of votes.

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