How a garage-based bookstore became the world's largest revenue-generating company
In 1994, Jeff Bezos launched a company called Cadabra to sell books online. Today, that venture has evolved into a global conglomerate so vast it has become the world's largest company by revenue, fundamentally altering how we shop, stream, and even compute.
Amazon's ascent from a 1994 startup in Bellevue, Washington, to a global titan is defined by a strategy of aggressive reinvestment and rapid expansion. Originally an inventory-free online bookstore, the company soon realized that controlling its own warehouses was essential for managing deliveries. This 'Get big fast' mantra, famously emblazoned on employee T-shirts, drove the company to expand from books into electronics, clothing, and even groceries through the 2017 acquisition of Whole Foods Market.
While many recognize Amazon as an e-commerce giant, its true economic engine lies in its diversification. As of 2024, a majority of its operating profits are generated by Amazon Web Services (AWS), its cloud computing division. This division has evolved from providing simple web developer APIs in 2002 to offering massive enterprise services like S3 and EC2. This technological foundation now powers the company's foray into generative AI through its Bedrock platform and significant investments in Anthropic, which reached $5 billion by April 2026.
The company's reach extends into nearly every corner of digital life, from the Twitch streaming platform to the Kindle e-reader. However, this dominance has not been without friction. Amazon has faced significant scrutiny over its business practices, including allegations of anti-competitive behavior, poor working conditions, and the treatment of small suppliers. Despite these controversies and large-scale corporate layoffs in 2023 and 2026, the company continues to scale, recently becoming a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average in early 2024.
Source: Amazon (company)
