Amazon Closes Shanghai AI Lab Amid Rising Geopolitical Tensions

Amazon is reportedly ceasing operations at its artificial intelligence research laboratory in Shanghai, as detailed in a Financial Times report on Wednesday. This move positions Amazon as the latest U.S. technology company to scale back its research presence in China, a trend observed amidst escalating geopolitical complexities.

This closure follows similar actions by other American tech giants, including IBM and Microsoft, which have also reduced their research and development activities within China. Such adjustments come as U.S. officials intensify their examination of AI-related work connected to China.

Wang Minjie indicated on social media that his team was "being dissolved due to strategic adjustments amid US-China tensions." He reflected on his experience, noting the privilege of leading the team "through the golden era of foreign research labs in China" over the past six years. Wang's team contributed to over 100 academic papers and pioneered an open-source framework for neural networks, generating nearly a billion dollars in sales for Amazon.

The decision to close the Shanghai facility aligns with broader global workforce reductions at Amazon. Andy Jassy, the chief executive, recently communicated to employees that an increased adoption of AI would lead to job displacements across the organization. Brad Glasser, an Amazon spokesperson, confirmed on Wednesday that "We’ve made the difficult business decision to eliminate some roles across particular teams in AWS," adding that these choices are essential for continued investment, hiring, and resource optimization.

While the exact number of employees at the AWS Shanghai research lab remains undisclosed, Amazon reported having more than 10,000 employees in China in 2022. The majority of Amazon's cloud business in the country primarily serves multinational corporations operating there, as well as Chinese technology firms utilizing AWS for their global activities.

The ability of AI researchers in China to collaborate internationally is increasingly constrained by U.S. export controls on advanced chips and cloud computing services, aimed at restricting China's access to cutting-edge hardware. Previously, IBM reduced more than 1,000 research and development positions, and in 2024, Microsoft offered to relocate hundreds of Chinese employees working on cloud and AI projects as Washington continued to impose restrictions on sensitive technologies for China. In 2023, Amazon also ceased its Chinese e-book store operations, having already pulled back from its e-commerce business in 2019 due to intense competition from local competitors, marking a clear trend of foreign tech companies re-evaluating their presence and strategies within the evolving Chinese market.