Amazon CEO Andy Jassy called the attacks against civilians in Israel “shocking and painful to watch” in a post on X on Monday night.
Jassy joined the chorus of those expressing sadness and outrage at the surprise offensive by Hamas militants, which began Saturday near the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip and has escalated into full-scale war.
According to the Amazon jobs page for Israel, Seattle-based Amazon opened its first office in Tel Aviv in 2014, and has continued to grow and invest in its Israeli client base. The Amazon Web Services space in Tel Aviv called Floor28 opened in 2018 as an education hub for events and workshops.
Jassy said he has been in touch with teammates in Israel to make sure the company is doing everything it can to “help support their family’s and their safety, and to assist however we can in this very difficult time.”
Amazon told GeekWire Tuesday that the company is in touch with employees on the ground and is providing individual support.
An internal web page has been set up where any employee can donate to humanitarian missions, and Amazon has started the process for making cash donations to international organizations operating in the area.
Amazon has a robust disaster response and relief apparatus that utilizes the company’s global logistics capabilities, and normally responds to crises such as hurricanes, earthquakes and other natural disasters. According to its website, since 2017, Amazon has donated more than 23 million relief items to support people impacted by over 108 disasters around the world.
AWS CEO Adam Selipsky also weighed in with a post on LinkedIn in which he called the attacks against Israel “sad and distressing.”
“Through the past few days we’ve been talking to our AWS teammates in Israel, offering our support,” Selipsky wrote. “Our priority is to make sure they are safe and have the resources they need during this difficult time. We are also in close contact with international humanitarian relief partners providing support to impacted civilians. We hope deeply for peace.”
The Information reported Monday on how the conflict could affect tech companies in Israel, whether because Israeli tech workers will be headed to the front lines or because U.S. firms have large offices there.
Microsoft has a significant presence in Israel, employing more than 2,000 people at its Tel Aviv campus, most of whom work on cybersecurity research and development, The Information said. The Redmond, Wash.-based tech giant’s careers page for Israel also lists offices in Herzliya, Haifa, and Nazareth. A 2-year-old video on the site, below, provides a tour of an R&D center. Microsoft declined to comment when contacted by GeekWire on Monday.
The Information said Google employs roughly 2,200 people in Tel Aviv and Haifa, and operates data centers in the country for its cloud computing division.
Other notable Seattle ties and comments about the war:
- Dr. Hayim Katsman, a University of Washington Ph.D. student, was one of the Americans killed in the attacks.
- Tech execs with Seattle ties are reportedly heading back to Israel to fight in the war.
- “It’s hard to explain how emotionally shattering the last few days have been,” wrote Shahar Ronen, a longtime Seattle-area engineering leader. “Fortunately my family and friends in Israel are safe, mostly sheltering in place. But in my second circle there are people who were murdered or are being held hostage. Regardless of where you stand on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, this attack by Hamas should be unequivocally condemned.”
- Craft PNW, a therapy center led by Seattle health tech entrepreneur Grin Lord, is hosting Israeli support groups this week.
