Jeff Bezos Just Started an AI Company—What’s This Mean for Amazon?

It came as a bit of a shocker to learn that Jeff Bezos, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN | AMZN Price Prediction) founder and one of the world’s richest men, is getting back to it with the recent founding of his new AI startup named Project Prometheus, for which he’ll act as one of the CEOs. Undoubtedly, Jeff Bezos is one of the greatest visionaries out there, and it’s exciting to hear that he’ll be one of the newest racers to join the AI race.

Of course, AI bubble fears have many investors panicked at a time like this. And while the latest wave of selling could precede a vicious correction that mirrors the events that unfolded way back in 2000, I do think that there will be a handful of winners and losers once the market “corrects” itself. Undoubtedly, Jeff Bezos’ Amazon navigated the dot-com bubble bust, taking a massive hit to the chin, only to rise out to eventually become one of the largest companies on earth.

Bubble or not, not all AI plays will fade away

Today, Amazon is a $2.4 trillion titan that’s dominated e-commerce, the public cloud, and, perhaps sooner rather than later, robotics, logistics automation, generative AI, and even robotaxis, with Zoox reportedly kicking off its rollout in the city of San Francisco with free rides. Undoubtedly, Amazon has been a profound disruptor over the years, and it’s one of the last names I’d dare bet against, even if an AI bubble were to grow more obvious. At the end of the day, the AI boom is real and it’s names like Amazon that could emerge as long-term winners, even if the near-to medium-term trajectory is bound to be bumpy and painful.

In any case, not a whole lot is known about Project Prometheus and what the implications will be for shares of Amazon. Arguably, Amazon is already in great shape in the AI race as it moves ahead with its Anthropic AI partnership while moving at full speed with its smarter Alexa+ platform. As I noted in a prior piece, Antropic’s enterprise focus and closeness to profitability made the AI firm a more intriguing AI player than the likes of an OpenAI.

Project Prometheus is arguably one of the most exciting AI startups to arise

Either way, it will be interesting to see where Amazon goes next as Project Prometheus looks to advance with Bezos and another genius, Vik Bajaj, a seasoned scientist from Google, in the driver’s seat. Though the ambitious AI startup is going its own way and isn’t a part of Amazon, I certainly wouldn’t rule out future collaborations that profoundly benefit both companies. 

At this juncture, Project Prometheus looks like it could become a force in robotics, with its goal of revolutionizing manufacturing and engineering. With $6.2 billion raised, much of which is from Bezos himself, Project Prometheus seems bound to hit the ground running. While it’ll probably be some time before investors can get a piece of the newest AI startup in town, I do think that it’s one of the most exciting developments to hit the tech scene in a while.

Jeff Bezos is one of the biggest names out there, and it will be interesting to see where Project Prometheus goes as AI enters its next chapters. Though the startup is independent from Amazon with a different direction and perhaps a more ambitious trajectory, I certainly wouldn’t be surprised if Amazon were to collaborate at some point down the road.

For now, Project Prometheus’ independence might be a source of great strength since it already has access to capital via some deep pockets (like those of Bezos), and given how investors are becoming increasingly concerned with AI spend. Undoubtedly, investors want to see returns on AI spend sooner rather than later, and perhaps staying private, as OpenAI and Anthropic are, is key to doing well in these earlier stages.

The bottom line

For now, Bezos’ new venture doesn’t mean much, if anything, for Amazon. Over time, though, that could change, especially if the startup is ready to commercialize and collaborate. Either way, Bezos has seemingly regained his startup spirit, and as he seizes opportunities in AI, it’s hard to dismiss AI as just another bubble.