In the realm of business, Amazon is a titan. The company’s endeavors stretch from clothing retail to home services, and the expansive company is only dominating more sects of industry. The size and worth of company gives them an automatic advantage whenever they want to enter new areas of business.

The company’s name directly correlates with reliability and versatility which is especially pleasing to customers. BHS senior and loyal Amazon shopper, Espen Nelson, says, “It’s more reliable, you don’t know if other companies are going to just steal your money. You can trust them [Amazon] with getting you your stuff.”

The global retail giant notably centers around online shopping. The so-called death of the department store may be a result of the normalization of digital retail. Brick-and-mortar stores that are only able to carry limited amounts of product are being wiped out by online superstores like Amazon that can carry endless brands and product options. Shoppers then search for the best prices first hand. “I like how you can see something on TV that’s super expensive and then go to Amazon and it’s much cheaper,” Nelson explains.

The ease of shopping online from the comfort of your own home is extremely appealing to customers, and Amazon is innovating to push this convenience factor even further. The company has been investing heavily in new technology to achieve such tasks. The use of drones for a service they like to call “30 minute delivery” utilizes small flying robotic machines to efficiently get product to nearby customers in areas closest to its warehouses. Although the introduction of this technology has been widely debated, its implementation may be a marker of the direction more companies might start to follow.

Amazon’s use of robotic technology spans even further into their stock rooms. Specially designed software allows robotic stockroom workers to map out the most direct pathway to get product from the shelf to correct customer package. These machines are able to execute their work in efficiency unparalleled to their human counterparts.  

Artificial intelligence may start replacing human filled positions in even more areas of Amazon business. Amazon introduced flagship stores across the country that use AI technology to allow consumers to go shopping for essentials but never go through a checkout line. The stores use sensors and cameras to track what products customers choose in the store. The precise information of the exact products and the customer that they are tied to are sent to a central server once the customer walks out of the door. The items are automatically charged to the Amazon account of the user, and the process of checking out of a grocery store is completely eliminated.

Heavily debated in the conversation of the new technology Amazon presents is whether or not Amazon is eliminating needed jobs from the market.

The company ensures that they’re actually creating jobs in the process. “We’re actually relying a lot more on our associates. We’ve increased their efficiency, and it really gives them the ability to work on different tasks. And we’ve actually grown our associate employment across the globe,” says Belinda Worley, Sr. Product Manager of Amazon Robotics. Amazon has proven itself to be a leader in online retail. It is possible that we will see more retailers following suit with the adoption of similar technology in their own business models.

The landscape of consumerism is quickly shifting and it is safe to say that insight into the direction of where it’s going, lies in the hands of Amazon.