Amazon employees are mocking the company's AI tools, referring to their output as 'slop' and joking about the company's failed attempts to motivate employees to use AI effectively. This internal criticism stands in stark contrast to the company's public claims about the potential benefits of AI. The memes, shared on a Slack channel called #actual-aws-memes, range from critical of AI to more lighthearted, such as one that compares Amazon's AI-powered coding tool Kiro to a jet taking off, with people left behind on the tarmac. The discussion on the channel is not solely negative, with some employees expressing genuine frustration with corporate policy. The memes emerged around the end of 2024 and the start of 2025, coinciding with increased pressure from leadership to adopt AI. The internal leaderboard, which tracked AI usage, was shut down due to cheating and wasteful AI use. Amazon's response to the negative comments is that they are from a few individuals and do not reflect the company's perspective. However, the author suggests that the memes highlight a deeper issue with the company's approach to AI adoption and the disconnect between public claims and internal reality.
