Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announced to staff on Wednesday that Peter DeSantis, a longtime AWS executive, will lead a new AI-focused organization responsible for the company’s AI models such as Nova, silicon development, and quantum computing to accelerate AI tools.
DeSantis has worked at Amazon for 27 years, with the past eight years serving as senior vice president for AWS. AWS operates as the cloud provider that supports approximately one-third of the internet’s infrastructure.
During Amazon’s recent re:Invent event, the company emphasized its dedication to AI applications in enterprise settings. The event featured the launch of the company’s Nova 2 models, underscoring ongoing advancements in this domain.
Jassy explained the decision in his message to employees. He stated, “With our Nova 2 models just launched at re:Invent, our custom silicon growing rapidly, and the advantages of optimizing across models, chips, and cloud software and infrastructure, we wanted to free Peter up to focus his energy, invention cycles, and leadership on these new areas.” This move allows DeSantis to concentrate on these specific AI-related initiatives.
Amazon continues to expand its AI efforts through substantial investments. Last month, AWS committed $50 billion to the U.S. government’s AI infrastructure. The company is reportedly negotiating a $10 billion investment in OpenAI. Amazon has already allocated $8 billion to Anthropic, a competitor to OpenAI.
