Jeff Bezos#The Washington Post

Bezos was born "Jeffrey Preston Jorgensen" on January 12, 1964, in Albuquerque, New Mexico,{{cite news|url=https://www.upi.com/Top_News/2020/01/12/UPI-Almanac-for-Sunday-Jan-12-2020/8721578623716/|title=UPI Almanac for Sunday, Jan. 12, 2020|work=United Press International|date=January 12, 2020|access-date=June 27, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200113032052/https://www.upi.com/Top_News/2020/01/12/UPI-Almanac-for-Sunday-Jan-12-2020/8721578623716/|archive-date=January 13, 2020|quote=Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos in 1964 (age 56)}} to Jacklyn (née Gise) and Ted Jorgensen.Robinson (2010), pp. 14, 100 At the time of his birth, his mother was a 17-year-old high-school student and his father was 19.Robinson (2010), pp. 14–15 Ted was a Danish American unicyclistBrad Stone, (2013). The Everything Store. United States: Little, Brown. {{ISBN|978-0-316-21926-6}} born in Chicago to a family of Baptists.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t95iRvivDHIC&dq=%22jeff+bezos%22+%22baptists%22&pg=PT139|isbn=978-0-316-21925-9|title=The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon|date=October 15, 2013|publisher=Little, Brown|access-date=March 19, 2023|archive-date=August 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230807120541/https://books.google.com/books?id=t95iRvivDHIC&dq=%22jeff%20bezos%22%20%22baptists%22&pg=PT139|url-status=live}} After completing high school despite challenging conditions, Jacklyn attended night school, bringing her baby with her.{{cite web |last1=Clifford |first1=Catherine |title=Jeff Bezos's single teen mom brought him to night school with her when he was a baby |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/14/jeff-bezoss-single-teen-mom-brought-him-to-night-school-with-her.html |publisher=CNBC |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128051520/https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/14/jeff-bezoss-single-teen-mom-brought-him-to-night-school-with-her.html |archive-date=January 28, 2021 |language=en |date=June 14, 2019 |quote=Condition one, I had to arrive and depart [high] school within five minutes of the starting and finishing bells. Condition two, I could not talk to other students. Condition three, I couldn’t eat lunch in the cafeteria. Condition four, I was told I would not be allowed to walk across the stage with my classmates to get my diploma |url-status=live}} Jeff attended a Montessori school in Albuquerque when he was 2.[https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2020/10/14/why-some-locals-are-miffed-about-jeff-bezos-free-preschool-near-seattle/ Why Some Locals Are Skeptical About Jeff Bezos' Free Preschool Near Seattle] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201040627/https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2020/10/14/why-some-locals-are-miffed-about-jeff-bezos-free-preschool-near-seattle/ |date=February 1, 2022 }}, Forbes, October 14, 2020

Ted struggled with alcohol and with his finances.{{Cite news |last=Stone |first=Brad |author-link=Brad Stone (journalist) |date=October 10, 2013 |title=The Secrets of Bezos: How Amazon Became the Everything Store |language=en |publisher=Bloomberg News |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-10-10/jeff-bezos-and-the-age-of-amazon-excerpt-from-the-everything-store-by-brad-stone |access-date=March 27, 2023 |archive-date=December 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221216112035/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-10-10/jeff-bezos-and-the-age-of-amazon-excerpt-from-the-everything-store-by-brad-stone |url-status=live }} Jacklyn left her husband to live with her parents, filing for divorce in June 1965 when Jeff was 17 months old.{{cite book |last=Stone |first=Brad |authorlink=Brad Stone (journalist) |year=2013 |title=The Everything Store |publisher=Little, Brown |isbn=978-0-316-21926-6}} After his parents divorced, his mother married Cuban immigrant Miguel "Mike" Bezos in April 1968.Robinson (2010), pp. 14, 18 Shortly after the wedding, Mike adopted 4-year-old Jeff, whose surname was then legally changed from Jorgensen to Bezos.Robinson (2010), p. 15 Jacklyn, her husband, and her son left the area and asked Ted to discontinue contact, to which he agreed.{{Cite news |last=Barr |first=Alistair |date=October 10, 2013 |title=Bike shop owner discovers he's father of Amazon founder |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/10/10/bezos-amazon-biological-father/2959633/ |access-date=March 27, 2023 |newspaper=USA Today |language=en-US |archive-date=March 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327035136/https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/10/10/bezos-amazon-biological-father/2959633/ |url-status=live }}

After Mike received his degree from the University of New Mexico, the family moved to Houston, Texas, so that he could begin working as an engineer for Exxon.{{cite web |title=Family of Voices: Miguel Bezos |url=https://americanhistory.si.edu/family-voices/individuals/miguel-bezos |website=National Museum of American History |date=March 16, 2017 |access-date=April 6, 2022 |language=en |archive-date=December 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201224193058/https://americanhistory.si.edu/family-voices/individuals/miguel-bezos |url-status=live }} Jeff attended River Oaks Elementary School in Houston from fourth to sixth grade.Robinson (2010), p. 18 Jeff's maternal grandfather was Lawrence Preston Gise, a regional director of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in Albuquerque.Robinson (2010), p. 16

Lawrence retired early to his family's ranch near Cotulla, Texas, where his grandson would spend many summers in his youthRobinson (2010), p. 17 and which he would later purchase and expand from {{convert|25000|acre|ha|0}} to {{convert|300000|acre|ha|0}}.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/15/business/media/jeff-bezos-amazon-rich-charity.html |title=At Last, Jeff Bezos Offers a Hint of His Philanthropic Plans|last=Frank|first=Robert |date=June 15, 2017|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=March 8, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180309054205/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/15/business/media/jeff-bezos-amazon-rich-charity.html |archive-date=March 9, 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/morning_call/2015/08/jeff-bezos-just-sold-534-million-worth-of-amazon.html |title=Jeff Bezos just sold $534 million worth of Amazon stock|last=Parkhurst|first=Emily |date=August 5, 2015|website=Puget Sound Business Journal|access-date=August 5, 2015|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150807183402/http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/morning_call/2015/08/jeff-bezos-just-sold-534-million-worth-of-amazon.html |archive-date=August 7, 2015}} Jeff displayed scientific interests and technological proficiency and once rigged an electric alarm to keep his younger half-siblings out of his room.Robinson (2010), p. 19{{cite web|url=https://www.achievement.org/achiever/jeffrey-p-bezos |title=Biography and Video Interview of Jeff Bezos at Academy of Achievement|publisher=Achievement.org|access-date=April 1, 2019|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190306162238/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jeffrey-p-bezos/ |archive-date=March 6, 2019}} The family moved to Miami, Florida, where Jeff attended Miami Palmetto High School.{{cite news|url=http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article1953866.html |title=Jeff Bezos: A rocket launched from Miami's Palmetto High|last=Yanez|first=Luisa |date=August 5, 2013|newspaper=Miami Herald|access-date=February 11, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180212084027/http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article1953866.html |archive-date=February 12, 2018}}{{cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/1999/03/bezos-3 |title=The Inner Bezos|last=Bayers|first=Chip |magazine=Wired|access-date=February 11, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180212083431/https://www.wired.com/1999/03/bezos-3/ |archive-date=February 12, 2018}} In high school, he worked at McDonald's as a short-order line cook during the breakfast shift.{{cite news|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/42412/face-time-jeff-bezos |title=Face Time With Jeff Bezos|last=Fishman|first=Charles |date=January 31, 2001|magazine=Fast Company|access-date=April 16, 2018|archive-date=April 17, 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180417105518/https://www.fastcompany.com/42412/face-time-jeff-bezos |url-status=live}}

Bezos attended the Student Science Training Program at the University of Florida. He was high school valedictorian, a National Merit Scholar,{{cite news|url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2017883721_amazonbezos25.html |title=Amazon.com's Bezos invests in space travel, time|last=Martinez|first=Amy |date=March 31, 2012|access-date=August 10, 2013|newspaper=The Seattle Times|archive-date=July 2, 2012|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120702232441/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2017883721_amazonbezos25.html |url-status=live}} and a Silver Knight Award winner in 1982.Robinson (2010), p. 24 In his graduation speech, Bezos told the audience that he dreamed of the day when mankind would colonize space. A local newspaper quoted his intention "to get all people off the earth and see it turned into a huge national park".{{cite news|last=Foer|first=Franklin |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/11/what-jeff-bezos-wants/598363 |title=Jeff Bezos's Master Plan|work=The Atlantic |date=November 1, 2019 |access-date=October 10, 2019|archive-date=October 10, 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191010193219/https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/11/what-jeff-bezos-wants/598363/ |url-status=live}}

After graduating from high school in 1982, Bezos attended Princeton University. He initially majored in physics but later switched to electrical engineering and computer science.{{cite news|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/50541/inside-mind-jeff-bezos-4|title=Inside the Mind of Jeff Bezos|last=Deutschman|first=Alan |date=August 1, 2004|work=Fast Company|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date=February 26, 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180226211555/https://www.fastcompany.com/50541/inside-mind-jeff-bezos-4 |url-status=live}} In 2018, during a talk at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., Bezos revealed that, some thirty years ago, his Princeton classmate Yasantha Rajakarunanayake had defeated him in solving a mathematical problem, causing him to give up on his dreams of becoming a theoretical physicist.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv_vkA0jsyo |title=Jeff Bezos At The Economic Club Of Washington (9/13/18) |date=13 September 2018 |last=CNBC |access-date=17 June 2024 |via=YouTube}}{{Cite web |title=The seeds of my success were sown in early childhood. {{!}} UNICEF Sri Lanka |url=https://www.unicef.org/srilanka/stories/seeds-my-success-were-sown-early-childhood |access-date=17 June 2024 |website=www.unicef.org |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Wolfe |first=Sean |title=Watch Jeff Bezos tell the funny story about the moment in college he realized he 'was never going to be a great theoretical physicist' |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-moment-in-college-he-realized-would-not-be-theoretical-physicist-2018-9 |access-date=17 June 2024 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=24 September 2018 |title=Jeff Bezos wanted to be a physicist, but started Amazon after a friend showed him he wasn't smart enough |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/jeff-bezos-wanted-to-be-a-physicist-but-started-amazon-after-a-friend-showed-him-he-wasn-t-smart-enough-1347637-2018-09-24 |access-date=17 June 2024 |website=India Today |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Mihindukulasuriya |first=Regina |date=20 September 2018 |title=The Sri Lankan who solved a maths problem for Jeff Bezos & gave the world Amazon |url=https://theprint.in/economy/the-sri-lankan-who-solved-a-maths-problem-for-jeff-bezos-gave-the-world-amazon/121706/ |access-date=17 June 2024 |website=ThePrint |language=en-US}}

Bezos was a member of the Quadrangle Club, one of Princeton's 11 eating clubs.{{cite web|url=https://www.princetonquadrangleclub.com/about.html |website=Princeton Quadrangle CLub|title=About|access-date=July 13, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200714022608/https://www.princetonquadrangleclub.com/about.html |archive-date=July 14, 2020}} Additionally, he was the president of the Princeton chapter of the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS).Robinson (2010), pp. 25–27{{cite web|url=https://www.achievement.org/achiever/jeffrey-p-bezos/#interview |title=Biography and Video Interview of Jeff Bezos at Academy of Achievement|publisher=Achievement|access-date=April 7, 2019|archive-date=March 6, 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190306162238/http://www.achievement.org/achiever/jeffrey-p-bezos/#interview |url-status=live}} He had a 4.2 GPA{{cite news |last=Deutschman |first=Alan |date=August 1, 2004 |title=Inside the Mind of Jeff Bezos |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/50541/inside-mind-jeff-bezos-4 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226211555/https://www.fastcompany.com/50541/inside-mind-jeff-bezos-4 |archive-date=February 26, 2018 |access-date=March 7, 2018 |work=Fast Company}} and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and Tau Beta Pi. Bezos graduated from Princeton in 1986 with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE), summa cum laude.Robinson (2010), p. 26

After Bezos graduated from college in 1986, he was offered jobs at Intel, Bell Labs, and Andersen Consulting, among others.Robinson (2010), p. 7 He first worked at Fitel, a fintech telecommunications start-up, where he was tasked with building a network for international trade.{{cite news |url=http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/7.03/bezos_pr.html|title=The Inner Bezos|last=Bayers|first=Chip|date=July 2003|magazine=Wired|access-date=April 30, 2018 |url-status= live| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150624103507/http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/7.03/bezos_pr.html|archive-date=June 24, 2015}} Bezos was promoted to head of development and director of customer service. He transitioned into the banking industry when he became a product manager at Bankers Trust from 1988 to 1990. From 1990 to 1994, he worked at D. E. Shaw & Co, a newly created hedge fund with a strong emphasis on mathematical modelling. Bezos became D. E. Shaw's fourth senior vice-president by age 30.

{{Main|Amazon (company)|l1=Amazon}}

File:Jeff Bezos visits the Robot Co-op in 2005.jpg

In spring 1994, Bezos read that web usage was growing at a rate of 2300% a year and eventually decided to establish an online bookstore.Robinson (2010), pp. 9–12 He and his then-wife, MacKenzie Scott, left their jobs at D. E. Shaw and founded Amazon in a rented garage in Bellevue, Washington on July 5, 1994, after writing its business plan on a cross-country drive from New York City to Seattle.{{cite news |url= https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/27/how-amazon-founder-jeff-bezos-went-from-the-son-of-a-teen-mom-to-the-worlds-richest-person.html|title=How Amazon's Jeff Bezos went from the son of a teen mom to the richest person in the world|last=Clifford|first=Catherine|date=October 27, 2017 |publisher=CNBC|access-date=March 6, 2018|archive-date=March 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180307151053/https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/27/how-amazon-founder-jeff-bezos-went-from-the-son-of-a-teen-mom-to-the-worlds-richest-person.html |url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.portfolio.com/resources/executive-profiles/Jeffrey-P-Bezos-1984|title=Top Executive Profiles – Jeffrey P. Bezos|website=Portfolio.com |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090204204126/http://www.portfolio.com/resources/executive-profiles/Jeffrey-P-Bezos-1984|archive-date=February 4, 2009|url-status= dead}} With Bezos at the helm and Scott taking an integral role in its operation—writing checks, keeping track of the books, and negotiating the company's first freight contracts—the foundation was laid for this garage-run operation to grow exponentially.{{Cite magazine |last=Matsakis |first=Louise |title=MacKenzie Bezos and the Myth of the Lone Genius Founder |language=en-US |magazine=Wired |url=https://www.wired.com/story/mackenzie-bezos-amazon-lone-genius-myth/ |access-date=April 14, 2022 |issn=1059-1028 |archive-date=May 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516162130/https://www.wired.com/story/mackenzie-bezos-amazon-lone-genius-myth/ |url-status=live }} Prior to settling in Seattle, Bezos had investigated setting up his company at an Indian reservation near San Francisco in order to avoid paying taxes.{{cite news |url= https://www.fastcompany.com/27309/whos-writing-book-web-business| title= Who's Writing the Book on Web Business?| last=Taylor|first=William|date=October 31, 1996| magazine=Fast Company|access-date=November 24, 2020| archive-date=November 11, 2020| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201111221110/https://www.fastcompany.com/27309/whos-writing-book-web-business| url-status=live}} Bezos initially named his new company Cadabra but later changed the name to Amazon after the Amazon River in South America, in part because the name begins with the letter A, which is at the beginning of the alphabet.{{cite encyclopedia |url= https://www.britannica.com/topic/Amazoncom|title=Amazon.com {{!}} History & Facts| encyclopedia= Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date= June 8, 2019| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190608125826/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Amazoncom|url-status=live}} At the time, website listings were alphabetized, so a name starting with "A" would appear sooner when customers conducted online searches.{{cite news |last=Lebowitz |first=Shana |date=July 5, 2019 |title=Amazon is celebrating its 25th birthday. Here's how the e-commerce giant got its name |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-jeff-bezos-chose-company-name-2018-5 |work=Business Insider |location=New York, NY |access-date=June 11, 2021 |archive-date=June 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210611125234/https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-jeff-bezos-chose-company-name-2018-5 |url-status=live }} In addition, he regarded "Amazon," the name of the world's largest river as fitting for what he hoped would become the world's largest online bookstore. He accepted an estimated $300,000 from his parents as an investment in Amazon.{{cite news |last1=Leibovich |first1=Mark |title=Child Prodigy, Online Pioneer |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2000/09/03/child-prodigy-online-pioneer/2ab207dc-d13a-4204-8949-493686e43415/ |access-date=June 8, 2021 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=September 3, 2000 |archive-date=September 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210922221101/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2000/09/03/child-prodigy-online-pioneer/2ab207dc-d13a-4204-8949-493686e43415/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Jeff Bezos convinced 22 investors to back his new company Amazon in 1994. Their returns? Mind-boggling |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/2143375/1994-he-convinced-22-family-and-friends-each-pay |access-date=June 8, 2021 |work=South China Morning Post |date=April 26, 2018 |archive-date=June 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608202709/https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/2143375/1994-he-convinced-22-family-and-friends-each-pay |url-status=live }} He warned many early investors that there was a 70% chance that Amazon would fail or go bankrupt.Robinson (2010), p. 56 Although Amazon was originally an online bookstore, Bezos had always planned to expand to other products. Three years after Bezos founded Amazon, he took it public with an initial public offering (IPO).{{cite web| url= http://fortune.com/2017/05/15/amazon-stock-20-years-ipo|title=If You Invested in Amazon at Its IPO, You Could Have Been a Millionaire|last=Shen|first=Lucinda|date=May 15, 2017|website=Fortune|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308103918/http://fortune.com/2017/05/15/amazon-stock-20-years-ipo/|url-status=live}} In response to critical reports from Fortune and Barron's, Bezos maintained that the growth of the Internet would overtake competition from larger book retailers such as Borders and Barnes & Noble.

In 1998, Bezos diversified into the online sale of music and video, and by the end of the year he had expanded the company's products to include a variety of other consumer goods. Bezos used the $54 million raised during the company's 1997 equity offering to finance the aggressive acquisition of smaller competitors. Among these acquisitions were his purchase of a majority stake in pets.com in 1999 and a purchase of a portion of kozmo.com for $60 million, both of which would fail after the dot-com bubble collapse in 2000. By the end of 2000, Bezos borrowed $2 billion from banks, as its cash balances dipped to only $350 million.{{cite news| url= https://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/10/business/yourmoney/a-retail-revolution-turns-10.html|title=A Retail Revolution Turns 10|last=Rivlin|first=Gary|date=July 10, 2005|newspaper=The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date= January 12, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180112062707/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/10/business/yourmoney/a-retail-revolution-turns-10.html|url-status=live }} However, the company continued to expand despite its losses, and in 2002, Bezos led Amazon to launch Amazon Web Services, which compiled data from weather channels and website traffic. Revenues stagnated later that year,{{cite news| url= https://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/10/business/yourmoney/a-retail-revolution-turns-10.html|title=A Retail Revolution Turns 10|last=Rivlin|first=Gary|date=October 7, 2005|work= The New York Times |access-date=April 3, 2018 |archive-date=June 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180604053943/https://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/10/business/yourmoney/a-retail-revolution-turns-10.html|url-status=live}} and after the company nearly went bankrupt, he closed distribution centers and laid off 14% of the Amazon workforce. In 2003, Amazon rebounded from financial instability and turned a profit of $35 million.{{cite web|url=https://www.ted.com/talks/jeff_bezos_on_the_next_web_innovation|title=The electricity metaphor for the web's future|last=Bezos|first=Jeff|date=April 9, 2007 |access-date=March 7, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019224630/https://www.ted.com/talks/jeff_bezos_on_the_next_web_innovation|archive-date=October 19, 2017}}{{cite web | last=Perez | first=Juan Carlos | title=Amazon records first profitable year in its history | website=Computerworld | date=2004-01-28 | url=https://www.computerworld.com/article/2575106/amazon-records-first-profitable-year-in-its-history.html | access-date=2024-02-19 | archive-date=February 19, 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219020424/https://www.computerworld.com/article/2575106/amazon-records-first-profitable-year-in-its-history.html | url-status=live }}

In November 2007, Bezos launched the Amazon Kindle.{{cite web |url= http://www.newsweek.com/amazon-reinventing-book-96909| title=Amazon: Reinventing the Book|date=November 17, 2007|website=Newsweek|access-date=March 7, 2018 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308231436/http://www.newsweek.com/amazon-reinventing-book-96909|archive-date=March 8, 2018}} According to a 2008 Time profile, Bezos wished to create a device that allowed a "flow state" in reading similar to the experience of video games.{{cite news |url=https://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1733748_1733758_1736345,00.html|title=The 2008 Time 100 |last=Quittner|first=Josh|date=May 12, 2008|magazine=Time|access-date=March 7, 2018|issn=0040-781X|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190120193819/http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1733748_1733758_1736345,00.html|archive-date=January 20, 2019}} In 2013, Bezos secured a $600-million contract with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on behalf of Amazon Web Services.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/how-jeff-bezos-was-selected-but-never-joined-the-defense-innovation-board/2018/02/23/e3dd42d6-1828-11e8-8b08-027a6ccb38eb_story.html|title=How Jeff Bezos was selected for, but never joined, the Defense Innovation Board|last1=Davenport|first1=Christian|date=February 23, 2018|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=March 7, 2018|last2=Lamothe|first2=Dan|issn=0190-8286|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308231406/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/how-jeff-bezos-was-selected-but-never-joined-the-defense-innovation-board/2018/02/23/e3dd42d6-1828-11e8-8b08-027a6ccb38eb_story.html|archive-date=March 8, 2018}} In October of that year, Amazon was recognized as the largest online shopping retailer in the world.{{cite news| url= https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/2013/01/14/bezos-i-never-expected|title=Bezos: I never expected this'|date=January 4, 2013|work=Digital Commerce 360|access-date=March 11, 2018|archive-date=July 24, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180724032133/https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/2013/01/14/bezos-i-never-expected/|url-status=live}}

File:Jeff Bezos' iconic laugh.jpg

In May 2016, Bezos sold slightly more than one million shares of his holdings in the company for $671 million, the largest sum he had ever raised from selling some of his Amazon stock.{{cite web|url=https://www.insidermole.com/insider/bezos-jeffrey-p/transactions|title=Bezos Jeffrey P.: Insider Trading Transactions|publisher=InsiderMole.com|access-date=July 14, 2016|archive-date=August 16, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160816081439/https://www.insidermole.com/insider/bezos-jeffrey-p/transactions|url-status=live}} On August 4, 2016, Bezos sold another million of his shares for $756.7 million.{{cite web|url=http://www.davemanuel.com/net-worth/jeff-bezos|title=Jeff Bezos Net Worth|website=Davemanuel.com|access-date=December 29, 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171230114711/https://www.davemanuel.com/net-worth/jeff-bezos| archive-date=December 30, 2017}} A year later, Bezos took on 130,000 new employees when he ramped up hiring at company distribution centers.{{cite web| url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/amazon-posts-profits-of-19-billion-its-highest-ever/2018/02/01/402aa9c2-06c5-11e8-94e8-e8b8600ade23_story.html |title=Amazon posts quarterly profit of $1.9 billion, its highest ever|last=Bhattarai|first=Abha|date=February 1, 2018|newspaper=The Washington Post|issn=0190-8286|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180310135605/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/amazon-posts-profits-of-19-billion-its-highest-ever/2018/02/01/402aa9c2-06c5-11e8-94e8-e8b8600ade23_story.html|url-status=live}} By January 19, 2018, his Amazon stock holdings had appreciated to slightly over $109 billion; months later he began to sell stock to raise cash for other enterprises, in particular, Blue Origin.{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-bezos-amazon-blue-origin-20180312-story.html|title=Bezos is putting $1 billion a year into rocket-maker Blue Origin by selling Amazon stock|agency=Bloomberg|date=March 12, 2018|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|access-date=April 30, 2018|archive-date=April 30, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430114728/http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-bezos-amazon-blue-origin-20180312-story.html|url-status=live}} On January 29, 2018, he was featured in Amazon's Super Bowl commercial.{{cite news|url=https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/308222|title=Billionaire Jeff Bezos Will Star in Amazon's Super Bowl Ad|last=Belanger|first=Lydia|date=January 29, 2018|work=Entrepreneur|access-date=April 7, 2018|archive-date=April 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180408010023/https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/308222 |url-status=live }} On February 1, 2018, Amazon reported its highest ever profit with quarterly earnings of $2 billion.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-results/amazon-posts-largest-profit-in-its-history-on-sales-tax-boost-idUSKBN1FL6H0|title=Amazon posts largest profit in its history on sales, tax boost|last=Dastin|first=Jeffrey|date=February 1, 2018|work=Reuters|access-date=April 30, 2018|archive-date=April 30, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430114537/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-results/amazon-posts-largest-profit-in-its-history-on-sales-tax-boost-idUSKBN1FL6H0|url-status=live}} Due to the growth of Alibaba in China, Bezos has often expressed interest in expanding Amazon into India.{{cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/after-losing-china-jeff-bezos-really-wants-to-win-in-india/articleshow/63204865.cms|title=After losing China, Jeff Bezos really wants to win in India|agency=Bloomberg|date=March 9, 2018|newspaper=The Times of India|access-date=April 30, 2018|archive-date=June 11, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180611184844/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/after-losing-china-jeff-bezos-really-wants-to-win-in-india/articleshow/63204865.cms|url-status=live}} On July 27, 2017, Bezos momentarily became the world's wealthiest person over Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates when his estimated net worth increased to just over $90 billion. His wealth surpassed $100 billion for the first time on November 24, 2017, and he was formally designated the wealthiest person in the world by Forbes on March 6, 2018, with a net worth of $112 billion.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/billions/2018/09/04/jeff-bezos-is-18-billion-richer-as-amazons-market-cap-briefly-hits-1-trillion/|title=Jeff Bezos Is $1.8 Billion Richer As Amazon's Market Cap Briefly Hits $1 Trillion|magazine=Forbes|date=September 4, 2018|last=Debter|first=Lauren|access-date=June 19, 2019|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190621183449/https://www.forbes.com/sites/billions/2018/09/04/jeff-bezos-is-18-billion-richer-as-amazons-market-cap-briefly-hits-1-trillion/|archive-date=June 21, 2019}}

File:Naturalization Ceremony (27590970472).jpg medal on June 14, 2016, for his work with Amazon.{{Cite web|url=https://www.yoursurvivalguy.com/financial-security/the-benefits-of-billionaires/|title=The Benefits of Billionaires|date=March 20, 2019|website=Young Research & Publishing Inc.|access-date=October 10, 2021|archive-date=October 10, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211010183229/https://www.yoursurvivalguy.com/financial-security/the-benefits-of-billionaires/|url-status=live}}]]

In March 2018, Bezos dispatched Amit Agarwal, Amazon's global senior vice president, to India with $5.5 billion to localize operations throughout the company's supply chain routes.{{cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-05/five-things-you-need-to-know-to-start-your-day-jeeqzcof|title=Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day|work=Bloomberg News|date=March 5, 2018|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180306010642/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-05/five-things-you-need-to-know-to-start-your-day-jeeqzcof|archive-date=March 6, 2018|url-status=live }} Later in the month, U.S. President Donald Trump accused Amazon and Bezos, specifically, of sales tax avoidance, misusing postal routes, and anti-competitive business practices.{{cite news|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/03/forget-zuckerberg-trump-is-obsessed-with-breaking-jeff-bezos|title=Forget Zuckerberg: Why Trump Is "Obsessed" with Breaking Bezos|last=Kosoff|first=Maya|work=The Hive|access-date=January 2, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200810055258/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/03/forget-zuckerberg-trump-is-obsessed-with-breaking-jeff-bezos|archive-date=August 10, 2020}} Amazon's share price fell by 9% in response to the President's negative comments; this reduced Bezos's personal wealth by $10.7 billion.{{cite news|url=http://fortune.com/2018/03/29/amazon-stock-amzn-jeff-bezos-net-worth|title=The World's Richest Man Just Lost $10.7 Billion as Trump Tweets About Amazon|last=Shen|first=Lucinda|date=January 2, 2018|work=Fortune|access-date=April 4, 2018|archive-date=April 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180404090913/http://fortune.com/2018/03/29/amazon-stock-amzn-jeff-bezos-net-worth/|url-status=live}} Weeks later, Bezos recouped his losses when academic reports out of Stanford University indicated that Trump could do little to regulate Amazon in any meaningful way.{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-a-trump-led-antitrust-case-against-amazon-is-a-long-shot-1522501200|title=Why a Trump-Led Antitrust Case Against Amazon Is a Long Shot|last=Stevens|first=Laura|date=April 9, 2018|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=April 9, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180408183802/https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-a-trump-led-antitrust-case-against-amazon-is-a-long-shot-1522501200|archive-date=April 8, 2018}} During July 2018, a number of members of the U.S. Congress called on Bezos to detail the applications of Amazon's face recognition software, Rekognition.{{cite news| url= https://www.fastcompany.com/90209707/congress-demands-jeff-bezos-explain-amazons-face-recognition-software| title=Congress demands Jeff Bezos explain Amazon's face recognition software|magazine=Fast Company|date=July 26, 2018|last=Captain|first=Sean|access-date=July 26, 2018|archive-date=July 27, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180727224612/https://www.fastcompany.com/90209707/congress-demands-jeff-bezos-explain-amazons-face-recognition-software|url-status=live}}

File:Jeff Bezos-171027-F-DC888008 (25610066788).jpg.{{Cite web|url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/129133022@N07/25610066788/|title=171027-F-DC888008|date=December 31, 2011|via=Flickr|access-date=March 6, 2021|archive-date=March 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210307071819/https://www.flickr.com/photos/129133022@N07/25610066788/|url-status=live}}]]

Criticism of Amazon's business practices continued in September 2018 when Senator Bernie Sanders introduced the Stop Bad Employers by Zeroing Out Subsidies (Stop BEZOS) Act and accused Amazon of receiving corporate welfare.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2018/09/05/bernie-sanders-introduces-stop-bezos-act-senate/|title=Bernie Sanders introduces 'Stop BEZOS Act'|first=Abha|last=Bhattarai|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=September 5, 2018|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=September 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914152737/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2018/09/05/bernie-sanders-introduces-stop-bezos-act-senate/|url-status=live}} This followed revelations by the non-profit group New Food Economy which found that one third of Amazon workers in Arizona, and one tenth of Amazon workers in Pennsylvania and Ohio, relied on food stamps.{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/5/17819450/bernie-sanders-stop-bezos-amazon-worker-pay-corporate-welfare-tax-bill|title=Bernie Sanders introduces 'Stop BEZOS' bill to tax Amazon for underpaying workers|first=Adi|last=Robertson|website=The Verge|date=September 5, 2018|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=September 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914131936/https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/5/17819450/bernie-sanders-stop-bezos-amazon-worker-pay-corporate-welfare-tax-bill|url-status=live}} While preparing to introduce the bill, Sanders opined: "Instead of attempting to explore Mars or go to the moon, how about Jeff Bezos pays his workers a living wage?"{{cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/9/5/17822810/bernie-sanders-bill-bezos-amazon-ro-khanna|title=Bernie Sanders's BEZOS bill takes aim at how Amazon pays workers|first=Emily|last=Stewart|publisher=Vox|date=September 5, 2018|access-date= September 14, 2018|archive-date=September 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914094424/https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/9/5/17822810/bernie-sanders-bill-bezos-amazon-ro-khanna|url-status=live}} He later said: "Bezos could play a profound role. If he said today, nobody who is employed at Amazon will receive less than a living wage, it would send a message to every corporation in America."{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bernie-sanders-amazon-walmart-with-100-tax/|title=Bernie Sanders targets Amazon, Walmart with 100% tax|first=Kate|last=Gibson|publisher=CBS|date=September 5, 2018|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=September 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914131946/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bernie-sanders-amazon-walmart-with-100-tax/|url-status=live}} Sanders's efforts elicited a response from Amazon which pointed to the 130,000 jobs it created in 2017 and called the $28,446 figure for its median salary "misleading" as it included part-time workers.{{cite web|url=https://blog.aboutamazon.com/company-news/response-to-senator-sanders|title=Response to Senator Sanders|date=August 29, 2018|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=September 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914005442/https://blog.aboutamazon.com/company-news/response-to-senator-sanders|url-status=live}} However, Sanders countered that the companies targeted by his proposal have placed an increased focus on part-time workers to escape benefit obligations.{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bernie-sanders-amazon_us_5b8eecade4b0511db3dcfd55|title=What the Bernie Sanders Amazon welfare fight is really about|newspaper=HuffPost|date=September 5, 2018|first1=Arthur|last1=Delaney|first2=Dave|last2=Jamieson|access-date=September 14, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914181926/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bernie-sanders-amazon_us_5b8eecade4b0511db3dcfd55|archive-date=September 14, 2018}} On October 2, 2018, Bezos announced a company-wide wage increase, which Sanders applauded.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/02/business/amazon-minimum-wage.html|title=Amazon to raise minimum wage to $15 for all U.S. workers|first=Karen|last=Weise|newspaper=The New York Times|date=October 2, 2018|access-date=October 22, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181021233433/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/02/business/amazon-minimum-wage.html|archive-date=October 21, 2018}} The American workers who were being paid the minimum wage had this increased to $15 per hour, a decision that was interpreted as support for the Fight for $15 movement.{{cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/story/why-amazon-really-raised-minimum-wage/|title=Why Amazon really raised its minimum wage to $15|first=Louise|last=Matsakis|magazine=Wired|date=October 2, 2018|access-date=October 22, 2018|archive-date=October 30, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181030030200/https://www.wired.com/story/why-amazon-really-raised-minimum-wage/|url-status=live}}

In February 2021, Bezos announced that in the third quarter of 2021 he would step down from his role as CEO of Amazon to become the Executive Chairman of the Amazon Board. He was succeeded as CEO by Andy Jassy.{{Cite web|title=Amazon.com Announces Financial Results and CEO Transition|url=https://ir.aboutamazon.com/news-release/news-release-details/2021/Amazon.com-Announces-Fourth-Quarter-Results/default.aspx|access-date=|website=|archive-date=February 2, 2021|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210202211950/https://ir.aboutamazon.com/news-release/news-release-details/2021/Amazon.com-Announces-Fourth-Quarter-Results/default.aspx|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last=Weise|first=Karen|date=February 2, 2021|title=Jeff Bezos to Step Down as Amazon C.E.O.|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/02/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202211253/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/02/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon.html |archive-date=February 2, 2021 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=February 2, 2021}}{{cite news|last1=Gartenberg|first1=Chaim|date=February 2, 2021|title=Amazon will have a new CEO as Jeff Bezos transitions to executive chair later this year|work=The Verge|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/2/22263039/amazon-new-ceo-jeff-bezos-andy-jassy-executive-chair-board-q3-2021|access-date=February 2, 2021|archive-date=June 2, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230602172459/https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/2/22263039/amazon-new-ceo-jeff-bezos-andy-jassy-executive-chair-board-q3-2021|url-status=live}} On February 2, 2021, Bezos sent an email{{cite web|title=Bezos' memo to fellow Amazonians|date=February 2, 2021|publisher=Amazon.com|url=https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/email-from-jeff-bezos-to-employees|access-date=February 2, 2021|archive-date=February 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202225200/https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/email-from-jeff-bezos-to-employees|url-status=live}} to all Amazon employees, telling them the transition would give him "the time and energy [he] need[s] to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, The Washington Post, and [his] other passions."{{cite web|title=NBC News reports Jeff Bezos' intention to stand down as CEO of Amazon in the third quarter of 2021|website=NBC News|date=February 2, 2021|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/jeff-bezos-steps-down-amazon-ceo-n1256540|access-date=February 2, 2021|archive-date=February 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202221303/https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/jeff-bezos-steps-down-amazon-ceo-n1256540|url-status=live}} In February 2024, Bezos sold 24 million shares in Amazon at a total value of $4 billion. Bezos announced that he intended to sell 50 million shares in Amazon over the next year.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68277678|title=Amazon founder Jeff Bezos sells shares worth over $4bn|website=BBC News|date=14 February 2024|access-date=14 February 2024|archive-date=February 14, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240214172622/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68277678|url-status=live}} During an interview at the DealBook Summit in December 2024, Bezos said that he was dedicating 95% of his time to artificial intelligence initiatives at Amazon.{{Cite web |last=Mann |first=Jyoti |date=December 5, 2024 |title=Jeff Bezos says he's 'putting a lot of time' in at Amazon to help it become an AI winner |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-amazon-ai-efforts-blue-origin-2024-12 |website=Business Insider |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241205142840/https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-amazon-ai-efforts-blue-origin-2024-12 |archive-date=December 5, 2024 |url-status=live}}{{Cite web |last=Del Rey |first=Jason |date=December 9, 2024 |title=Amazon's top AI exec says industry concerns that LLMs hit a 'wall' are overblown, says Jeff Bezos 'very involved' in AI efforts |url=https://fortune.com/2024/12/09/amazon-rohit-prasad-ai-wall-new-dimension-alexa-brainstormai/ |work=Fortune |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241210030011/https://fortune.com/2024/12/09/amazon-rohit-prasad-ai-wall-new-dimension-alexa-brainstormai/ |archive-date=December 10, 2024 |url-status=live}}

{{Main|Blue Origin}}

File:NASA Deputy Administrator Tours Blue Origin.jpg (fifth from left) giving NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver (fourth from left) a tour of Blue Origin's crew capsule in 2011]]

File:Secretary of Defense Ash Carter meets with Jeff Bezos, May 5, 2016 (1).jpg meets with Bezos in 2016 at The Pentagon.]]

In September 2000, Bezos founded Blue Origin, a human spaceflight startup.{{cite web|last=Boyle|first=Alan|title=Blue Origin Revealed|url=http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/01/03/26062.aspx|publisher=MSNBC|date=December 9, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091223032428/http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/01/03/26062.aspx|archive-date=December 23, 2009}} Bezos has long expressed an interest in space travel and the development of human life in the Solar System. His 1982 high school valedictorian senior graduation speech was followed up with a Miami Herald interview in which he expressed an interest to build and develop hotels, amusement parks, and colonies for human beings who were in orbit.{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/node/21548487|title=Taking the long view|newspaper=The Economist|date=March 3, 2012|access-date=April 29, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430114118/https://www.economist.com/node/21548487|archive-date=April 30, 2018}} The 18-year-old Bezos stated that he wanted to preserve Earth from overuse through resource depletion.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/for-bezos-the-post-represents-new-frontier/2013/08/10/ba7cfeb6-013c-11e3-9a3e-916de805f65d_story.html|title=For Jeff Bezos, a new frontier|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=August 12, 2013|last=Whoriskey|first=Peter|access-date=February 20, 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170916053753/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/for-bezos-the-post-represents-new-frontier/2013/08/10/ba7cfeb6-013c-11e3-9a3e-916de805f65d_story.html|archive-date=September 16, 2017}} Rob Meyerson led Blue Origin from 2003 to 2017 and served as its first president.{{Cite web|date=November 8, 2018|title=Former Blue Origin president Rob Meyerson leaves Jeff Bezos' space venture|url=https://www.geekwire.com/2018/veteran-aerospace-engineer-rob-meyerson-leaves-jeff-bezos-blue-origin-space-venture/|access-date=April 9, 2021|website=GeekWire|language=en-US|archive-date=March 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190301162826/https://www.geekwire.com/2018/veteran-aerospace-engineer-rob-meyerson-leaves-jeff-bezos-blue-origin-space-venture/|url-status=live}}

After its founding, Blue Origin maintained a low profile until 2006 when it purchased a large tract of land in West Texas for a launch and test facility.{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116312683235519444|title=Buzz in West Texas is about Jeff Bezos space craft launch site|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=November 10, 2006|last=Mangalindan|first=Mylene|access-date=May 28, 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205053621/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116312683235519444|archive-date=February 5, 2015}} After the company gained the public's attention during the late 2000s, Bezos additionally indicated his interest in reducing the cost of space travel for humans while also increasing the safety of extraterrestrial travel.{{cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/11/ff_bezos/all/1|title=Jeff Bezos Owns the Web in More Ways Than You Think|magazine=Wired|date=November 13, 2011|last=Levy|first=Steven|access-date=December 9, 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111210145216/http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/11/ff_bezos/all/1|archive-date=December 10, 2011}} In September 2011, one of the company's uncrewed prototype vehicles crashed during a short-hop test flight. Although the crash was viewed as a setback, news outlets noted how far the company went from its founding-to-date in advancing spaceflight.{{cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/node/21548487|title=Taking the long view: Jeff Bezos, the founder and chief executive of Amazon, owes much of his success to his ability to look beyond the short-term view of things|date=March 3, 2012|newspaper=The Economist|access-date=August 10, 2013|quote=Mr Bezos's willingness to take a long-term view also explains his fascination with space travel, and his decision to found a secretive company called Blue Origin, one of several start-ups now building spacecraft with private funding.|archive-date=August 8, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130808064440/http://www.economist.com/node/21548487|url-status=live}} After the crash, Bezos has been superstitiously wearing his "lucky" Texas Cowboy boots to all rocket launches.{{Cite video |title=Fireside Chat with Jeff Bezos; Shah Rukh Khan, Zoya Akhtar; Amazon Prime Video |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJJB7eb-1u0 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207141134/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJJB7eb-1u0 |archive-date=February 7, 2021 |time=34m10s |via=YouTube |access-date=February 18, 2021 |url-status=live}} In May 2013, Bezos met with Richard Branson, chairman of Virgin Galactic, to discuss commercial spaceflight opportunities and strategies.{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/05/27/richard-branson-space-flight-jeff-bezos-elon-musk-amazon-spacex/2356245|title=Unplugged: Richard Branson's otherworldly space quest|newspaper=USA Today|date=May 27, 2013|last=Veverka|first=Mark|access-date=May 28, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130527155653/http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/05/27/richard-branson-space-flight-jeff-bezos-elon-musk-amazon-spacex/2356245/|archive-date=May 27, 2013}} He has been compared to Branson and Elon Musk as all three are billionaires who prioritize spaceflight among their business interests.{{cite news |url=https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/04/three-billionaires-are-racing-to-space--who-will-win- |title=Three Billionaires Are Racing to Space. Who Will Win? |last=Worrall |first=Simon |date=April 7, 2018 |work=National Geographic |access-date=April 7, 2018 |archive-date=April 7, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180407184158/https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/04/three-billionaires-are-racing-to-space--who-will-win-/ |url-status=dead }}

In 2015, Bezos announced that a new orbital launch vehicle was under development and would make its first flight in the late-2010s.{{cite web |last1=Foust |first1=Jeff |title=Bezos Not Concerned About Competition, Possible ULA Sale |url=http://spacenews.com/bezos-not-concerned-about-competition-possible-ula-sale |access-date=September 16, 2015 |website=Space News |date=September 15, 2015 |archive-date=December 18, 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20161218180647/http://spacenews.com/bezos-not-concerned-about-competition-possible-ula-sale/ |url-status=live }} Later in November, Blue Origin's New Shepard space vehicle successfully rocketed into space and reached its planned test altitude of 329,839 feet (100.5 kilometers) before executing a vertical landing back at the launch site in West Texas. In 2016, Bezos allowed select journalists to visit, tour, and photograph his facility.{{cite web |last=Boyle |first=Alan |url=http://www.geekwire.com/2016/jeff-bezos-lifts-curtain-blue-origin-rocket-factory-vision-space |title=Jeff Bezos lifts curtain on Blue Origin rocket factory, lays out grand plan for space travel that spans hundreds of years |website=GeekWire |date=March 8, 2016 |access-date=March 11, 2016 |archive-date=March 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310101109/http://www.geekwire.com/2016/jeff-bezos-lifts-curtain-blue-origin-rocket-factory-vision-space/ |url-status=live }} He has repeatedly called for increased inter-space energy and industrial manufacturing to decrease the negative costs associated with business-related pollution.{{cite web|last=Berger|first=Eric|url=https://arstechnica.com/science/2016/03/jeff-bezos-says-he-wants-to-fly-into-space-as-soon-as-possible|title=Jeff Bezos says he wants to fly into space 'as soon as possible'|website=Ars Technica|date=March 10, 2016|access-date=March 11, 2016|quote=Bezos: I want to change the whole cost structure of accessing space.|archive-date=March 10, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310202956/http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/03/jeff-bezos-says-he-wants-to-fly-into-space-as-soon-as-possible/|url-status=live}}

In December 2017, New Shepard successfully flew and landed dummy passengers, amending and pushing its human space travel start date into late 2018.{{Cite news |url=https://www.space.com/39111-blue-origin-mannequin-skywalker-dummy-launch.html |title=Later, Vader! Watch Blue Origin Fly 'Mannequin Skywalker' to Space and Back |last=Malik |first=Tariq |work=Space.com |access-date=April 4, 2018 |archive-date=April 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405214436/https://www.space.com/39111-blue-origin-mannequin-skywalker-dummy-launch.html |url-status=live }} To execute this program, Blue Origin built six of the vehicles to support all phases of testing and operations: no-passenger test flights, flights with test passengers, and commercial-passenger weekly operations.{{cite web|url=http://spacenews.com/blue-origin-plans-growth-spurt-this-year|title=Blue Origin plans growth spurt this year|last=Foust|first=Jeff|date=March 8, 2016|website=SpaceNews|access-date=March 11, 2016}} Since 2016, Bezos has spoken more freely about his hopes to colonize the solar system, and has been selling $1 billion in Amazon stock each year to capitalize Blue Origin in an effort to support this endeavor.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/science/blue-origin-rocket-jeff-bezos-amazon-stock.html|title=Jeff Bezos Says He Is Selling $1 Billion a Year in Amazon Stock to Finance Race to Space|last=St. Fluer|first=Nicholas|date=April 5, 2017|access-date=April 8, 2017|newspaper=The New York Times|archive-date=April 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170408021704/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/science/blue-origin-rocket-jeff-bezos-amazon-stock.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/29279/20160927/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-colonize-solar-system.htm|title=Jeff Bezos: Blue Origin Wants to Colonize the Solar System|last=Ayque|first=Jamie|date=September 27, 2016|access-date=September 27, 2016|archive-date=September 28, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160928164651/http://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/29279/20160927/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-colonize-solar-system.htm|url-status=live}} In May 2018, Bezos maintained that the primary goal of Blue Origin is to preserve the natural resources of Earth by making the human species multi-planetary.{{cite news|url=https://www.geekwire.com/2018/jeff-bezos-isdc-space-vision|title=Jeff Bezos: 'We will have to leave this planet ... and it's going to make this planet better'|last=Boyle|first=Alan|date=May 29, 2018|work=GeekWire|access-date=May 31, 2018|archive-date=May 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180529170353/https://www.geekwire.com/2018/jeff-bezos-isdc-space-vision/|url-status=live}} He announced that New Shepard would begin transporting humans into sub-orbital space by November 2018. In July 2018, it was announced that Bezos had priced commercial spaceflight tickets from $200,000 to $300,000 per person.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-blueorigin-exclusive/exclusive-jeff-bezos-plans-to-charge-at-least-200000-for-space-rides-sources-idUSKBN1K301R|title=Exclusive: Jeff Bezos plans to charge at least $200,000 for space...|last=Johnson |first=Eric M.|date=July 16, 2018|work=Reuters|access-date=July 18, 2018|archive-date=July 17, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180717235741/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-blueorigin-exclusive/exclusive-jeff-bezos-plans-to-charge-at-least-200000-for-space-rides-sources-idUSKBN1K301R|url-status=live}}

{{Infobox astronaut

| type = Commercial Astronaut
150px

| selection = Blue Origin

| flight_time = 10m 18s

| missions = NS-16

| insignia =

}}

On July 20, 2021, he launched on the NS-16 mission with his half-brother Mark Bezos, Wally Funk, and Oliver Daemen.{{Cite news|url = https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-57386049|title = Jeff Bezos and brother to fly to space in Blue Origin flight|work = BBC News|date = June 7, 2021|access-date = June 7, 2021|archive-date = December 3, 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211203094634/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-57386049|url-status = live}} He launched nine days after Richard Branson launched on board the Virgin Galactic Unity 22 mission. Bezos's suborbital flight lasted over 10 minutes, reaching a peak altitude of {{convert|66.5|mi|km}}.{{cite news |title=Jeff Bezos, Mark Bezos, Wally Funk and Oliver Daemen reach edge of space, return safely on Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/07/20/bezos-space-flight-live-updates-video/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=July 20, 2021 |language=en |access-date=July 20, 2021 |archive-date=July 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210720130659/https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/07/20/bezos-space-flight-live-updates-video/ |url-status=live }}

{{See also|The Washington Post}}

On August 5, 2013, Bezos announced his purchase of The Washington Post for $250 million in cash,{{cite news|last=Farhi|first=Paul|title=Washington Post to be sold to Jeff Bezos |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/washington-post-to-be-sold-to-jeff-bezos/2013/08/05/ca537c9e-fe0c-11e2-9711-3708310f6f4d_story.html|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=August 5, 2013|date=August 6, 2013|archive-date=January 1, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101175929/https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/washington-post-to-be-sold-to-jeff-bezos/2013/08/05/ca537c9e-fe0c-11e2-9711-3708310f6f4d_story.html|url-status=live}} at the suggestion of his friend, Don Graham.{{Cite video |title=Jeff Bezos at the Economic Club of Washington |date=September 14, 2018 |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=xv_vkA0jsyo |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208081725/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv_vkA0jsyo |archive-date=February 8, 2021 |time=13m |via=YouTube |access-date=February 22, 2021 |url-status=live }} To execute the sale, he established limited liability company Nash Holdings to serve as a holding company through which he would own the newspaper.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/08/06/jeff-bezos-is-buying-the-washington-post-heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-sale|title=Jeff Bezos is buying The Washington Post. Here's what you need to know about the sale.|last=Matthews|first=Dylan|date=August 8, 2013|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=March 11, 2018|archive-date=March 11, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311140725/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/08/06/jeff-bezos-is-buying-the-washington-post-heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-sale/|url-status=live}} The sale closed on October 1, 2013, and Nash Holdings took control.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/washington-post-closes-sale-to-amazon-founder-jeff-bezos/2013/10/01/fca3b16a-2acf-11e3-97a3-ff2758228523_story.html|title=The Washington Post closes sale to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos|last=Farhi|first=Paul|date=October 1, 2013|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=March 31, 2014|archive-date=May 28, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140528092936/http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/washington-post-closes-sale-to-amazon-founder-jeff-bezos/2013/10/01/fca3b16a-2acf-11e3-97a3-ff2758228523_story.html|url-status=live}} In March 2014, Bezos made his first significant change at The Washington Post and lifted the online paywall for subscribers of a number of U.S. local newspapers in Texas, Hawaii, and Minnesota.{{cite news|last=Luckerson|first=Victor|title=Jeff Bezos Makes His First Major Move at the Washington Post|url=https://time.com/30243/jeff-bezos-makes-his-first-major-move-at-the-washington-post/|access-date=February 20, 2016|magazine=Time|date=March 19, 2014|archive-date=February 7, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160207013940/http://time.com/30243/jeff-bezos-makes-his-first-major-move-at-the-washington-post/|url-status=live}} In January 2016, Bezos set out to reinvent the newspaper as a media and technology company by reconstructing its digital media, mobile platforms, and analytics software.{{cite news|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/40495770/the-washington-post-is-a-software-company-now|title=The Washington Post Is a Software Company Now|last=McCrakken|first=Harry|date=November 17, 2017|magazine=Fast Company|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310135709/https://www.fastcompany.com/40495770/the-washington-post-is-a-software-company-now|url-status=live}} After a surge in online readership in 2016, the paper was profitable for the first time since Bezos made the purchase in 2013.{{cite news |last=Wieczner |first=Jen |title=How Jeff Bezos Reacts to 'Negative' Amazon Articles in the Washington Post |url=http://fortune.com/2017/10/27/amazon-jeff-bezos-washington-post |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180301153000/http://fortune.com/2017/10/27/amazon-jeff-bezos-washington-post/ |archive-date=March 1, 2018 |access-date=March 9, 2018 |work=Fortune}} However, Bezos' ownership of the Post has been subject to scrutiny and criticism regarding his treatment of employees as well as his influence on the paper's content, in particular 2024-25 interference with the editorial and opinion pages.

{{Main|Bezos Expeditions}}

Bezos makes personal investments through his venture capital vehicle, Bezos Expeditions.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/inside-jeff-bezos-80-billion-empire.html|title=Inside Jeff Bezos' $80 billion empire|last=Hess|first=Abigail|date=August 29, 2017|publisher=CNBC|access-date= September 13, 2017|archive-date=September 13, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170913183250/https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/29/inside-jeff-bezos-80-billion-empire.html|url-status=live}} He was one of the first shareholders in Google, when he invested $250,000 in 1998. That $250,000 investment resulted in 3.3 million shares of Google stock, worth about $3.1 billion in 2017.{{cite web|url=http://www.growthink.com/content/story-jeff-bezos%E2%80%99-250000-investment-google-1998|title=The Story of Jeff Bezos' $250,000 Investment into Google in 1998|last=Turo|first=Jay|website=Growthink|access-date= February 28, 2017|archive-date=March 5, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170305002724/http://www.growthink.com/content/story-jeff-bezos%E2%80%99-250000-investment-google-1998|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://allthingsd.com/20091005/new-yorker-bezos-initial-google-investment-was-250000-in-1998-because-i-just-fell-in-love-with-larry-and-sergey|title=New Yorker: Bezos' Initial Google Investment Was $250K in 1998 Because 'I Just Fell in Love with Larry and Sergey'|last=Swisher|first=Kara|year=2009|website=All Things D|access-date=February 28, 2017|archive-date=March 17, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170317215509/http://allthingsd.com/20091005/new-yorker-bezos-initial-google-investment-was-250000-in-1998-because-i-just-fell-in-love-with-larry-and-sergey/|url-status=live}} He also invested in Unity Biotechnology, a life-extension research firm hoping to slow or stop the process of aging.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/31/google-co-founders-and-silicon-valley-billionaires-try-to-live-forever.html|title=Google's co-founders and other Silicon Valley billionaires are trying to live forever|last=Bloom|first=Ester|date=March 31, 2017|publisher=CNBC|access-date=June 29, 2017|archive-date=July 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170704231656/http://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/31/google-co-founders-and-silicon-valley-billionaires-try-to-live-forever.html|url-status=live}} Bezos is involved in the healthcare sector, which includes investments in Unity Biotechnology, GRAIL, Juno Therapeutics, and Zocdoc.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/03/bezos-health-investments-reveal-strategy.html|title=We can learn a lot about Jeff Bezos' health strategy by looking at his investments|last1=Farr|first1=Christina|date=February 3, 2018|access-date=February 4, 2018|publisher=CNBC|archive-date=February 3, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180203224219/https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/03/bezos-health-investments-reveal-strategy.html|url-status=live}} In January 2018, an announcement was made concerning Bezos's role within a new, unnamed healthcare company. This venture, later named Haven, is expected to be a partnership between Amazon, JPMorgan, and Berkshire Hathaway.{{cite web| url= http://fortune.com/2018/01/31/jeff-bezos-amazon-health-care|title=Why Jeff Bezos Might Be the One to Crack the Health Care Challenge|last1=Lashinsky|first1=Adam|date=January 31, 2018|access-date=February 4, 2018|work=Fortune|archive-date=February 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180204185148/http://fortune.com/2018/01/31/jeff-bezos-amazon-health-care/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url= https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/30/technology/amazon-berkshire-hathaway-jpmorgan-health-care.html|title=Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Team Up to Try to Disrupt Health Care|last1=Wingfield|first1=Nick|date=January 30, 2018|access-date=February 4, 2018|newspaper=The New York Times|last2=Thomas|first2=Katie|last3=Abelson|first3=Reed|archive-date=February 3, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180203171550/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/30/technology/amazon-berkshire-hathaway-jpmorgan-health-care.html|url-status=live}}

Bezos also supports philanthropic efforts through direct donations and non-profit projects funded by Bezos Expeditions.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/15/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon-twitter-charity.html|title=Jeff Bezos Wants Ideas for Philanthropy, So He Asked Twitter| last=Wingfield|first=Nick|date=June 15, 2017|work= The New York Times|issn=0362-4331|access-date= March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 9, 2018| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180309054222/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/15/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon-twitter-charity.html|url-status=live}} Bezos used Bezos Expeditions to fund several philanthropic projects, including an Innovation center at the Seattle Museum of History and Industry and the Bezos Center for Neural Circuit Dynamics at Princeton Neuroscience Institute.{{Cite web|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/billionaire-bezos-adds-to-eclectic-interests/|title=Billionaire Bezos adds to eclectic interests|last=Martinez|first=Amy|date=August 5, 2013|website=The Seattle Times|access-date=April 2, 2019|archive-date=April 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402165909/https://www.seattletimes.com/business/billionaire-bezos-adds-to-eclectic-interests/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.mohai.org/press-media/press-releases/item/2612-jeff-and-mackenzie-bezos-flip-the-switch-on-new-bezos-center-for-innovation-at-mohai-kicking-off-saturday-launch-celebration|title=Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos Flip the Switch on New Bezos Center for Innovation at MOHAI, Kicking Off Saturday Launch Celebration|website=mohai.org|access-date=December 31, 2017|archive-date=August 17, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150817213203/http://www.mohai.org/press-media/press-releases/item/2612-jeff-and-mackenzie-bezos-flip-the-switch-on-new-bezos-center-for-innovation-at-mohai-kicking-off-saturday-launch-celebration|url-status=live}} In 2013, Bezos Expeditions funded the recovery of two Saturn V first-stage Rocketdyne F-1 engines from the floor of the Atlantic Ocean.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2013/03/the-engines-that-propelled-us-into-space-recovered-from-the-ocean-floor/274204/|title=The Engines That Propelled Us into Space, Recovered From the Ocean Floor|last=Garber|first=Megan|date=March 20, 2013|website=The Atlantic|access-date=April 2, 2019|archive-date=April 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402165908/https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2013/03/the-engines-that-propelled-us-into-space-recovered-from-the-ocean-floor/274204/|url-status=live}} They were positively identified as belonging to the Apollo 11 mission's S-1C stage from July 1969.{{cite web|url=http://www.space.com/22044-apollo-rocket-engines-bezos.html|title=Rocket Engine Part Recovered by Amazon CEO Has Apollo 11 History|last=Pearlman|first=Robert Z.|date=July 19, 2013|location=New York|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724005810/http://www.space.com/22044-apollo-rocket-engines-bezos.html|archive-date=July 24, 2013|access-date=August 10, 2013|newspaper=Space.com}}{{Cite web| url= https://www.pcmag.com/news/309462/bezos-salvage-team-plucks-apollo-rocket-engines-from-atlanti|title=Bezos Salvage Team Plucks Apollo Rocket Engines from Atlantic|last=Poeter|first=Damon|website=PC Magazine|access-date=April 2, 2019|date=March 20, 2013|archive-date= April 2, 2019| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190402165911/https://www.pcmag.com/news/309462/bezos-salvage-team-plucks-apollo-rocket-engines-from-atlanti|url-status=live}} The engines are currently on display at the Seattle Museum of Flight.{{Cite web| url=http://www.museumofflight.org/Exhibits/apollo-f-1-engine-preview|title=Apollo F-1 Engine Preview {{!}} The Museum of Flight|website=museumofflight.org|access-date=April 4, 2018|archive-date=April 4, 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180404200740/http://www.museumofflight.org/Exhibits/apollo-f-1-engine-preview|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.geekwire.com/2019/apollo-11-moon-landing-anniversary-nears-space-fans-get-ready-celebrate/|title=As Apollo 11 moon landing anniversary nears, space fans get ready to celebrate|date=March 16, 2019|website=GeekWire|access-date=April 2, 2019|archive-date= April 2, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190402180300/https://www.geekwire.com/2019/apollo-11-moon-landing-anniversary-nears-space-fans-get-ready-celebrate/|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Altos Labs}}

In September 2021, Bezos co-founded Altos Labs with Mail.ru founder Yuri Milner. Altos Labs is a well-funded biotechnology company dedicated to harnessing cellular reprogramming to develop longevity therapeutics.{{cite news |last1=Regalado |first1=Antonio |title=Meet Altos Labs, Silicon Valley's latest wild bet on living forever |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/09/04/1034364/altos-labs-silicon-valleys-jeff-bezos-milner-bet-living-forever/ |date=September 4, 2021 |work=MIT Technology Review |access-date=September 18, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210905014902/https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/09/04/1034364/altos-labs-silicon-valleys-jeff-bezos-milner-bet-living-forever/ |archive-date=September 5, 2021 }} The company has recruited prominent scientists such as Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte (known for work on rejuvenation through reprogramming), Steve Horvath (known for work in epigenetic aging clocks), and Shinya Yamanaka (the Nobel Prize-winning inventor of cellular reprogramming in mammalian cells). The company left stealth mode and launched on January 19, 2022, with a start capital of $3 billion and an executive team led by Hal Barron.{{Cite web|last=Philippidis|first=Alex|date=January 19, 2022|title=Altos Labs Launches with $3B and a Focus on Reversing Disease, Aging|url=https://www.genengnews.com/aging/altos-labs-launches-with-3b-and-a-focus-on-reversing-disease-aging/|access-date=January 23, 2022|website=Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News|language=en-US|archive-date=January 23, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220123161608/https://www.genengnews.com/aging/altos-labs-launches-with-3b-and-a-focus-on-reversing-disease-aging/|url-status=live}}

File:Naturalization Ceremony (27590969882).jpg ceremony on June 14, 2016]]

Journalist Nellie Bowles of The New York Times has described the public persona and personality of Bezos as that of "a brilliant but mysterious and coldblooded corporate titan".{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/12/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon.html|title=Jeff Bezos, Mr. Amazon.com, Steps Out|last1=Wingfield|first1=Nick|year=2018|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=March 9, 2018|last2=Bowles|first2=Nellie|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308061444/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/12/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon.html|url-status=live}} During the 1990s, Bezos earned a reputation for relentlessly pushing Amazon forward, often at the expense of public charity and social welfare.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/29/books/the-everything-store-jeff-bezos-and-the-age-of-amazon.html|title=The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon|last=Kakutani|first=Michiko|date=October 28, 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=March 9, 2018|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=May 29, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190529205120/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/29/books/the-everything-store-jeff-bezos-and-the-age-of-amazon.html|url-status=live}} Journalist Mark O'Connell criticized Bezos's relentless customer focus as "very small" in terms of impact on humanity as a whole,{{Cite news |title='A managerial Mephistopheles': Inside the mind of Jeff Bezos |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/feb/03/jeff-bezos-and-the-world-amazon-made |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210204150033/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/feb/03/jeff-bezos-and-the-world-amazon-made |date=February 4, 2021 |access-date=February 10, 2021 |archive-date=February 4, 2021 |work=The Guardian |last1=O'Connell |first1=Mark |url-status=live }} a sentiment technologist Tim O'Reilly agreed with.{{Cite web |title=A Tale of Two Platforms |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210426084743/https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tale-two-platforms-tim-o-reilly/ |archive-date=April 26, 2021 |url=https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tale-two-platforms-tim-o-reilly/ |date=April 13, 2021 |last1=O'Reilly |first1=Tim |website=linkedin.com |language=en}} His business practices projected a public image of prudence and parsimony with his own wealth and that of Amazon. In 1999, Bezos was worth $10 billion yet drove a 1996 Honda Accord.{{cite news|url=https://variety.com/2013/biz/news/amazon-uses-60-minutes-to-unveil-automated-delivery-drones-1200907633|title=Amazon Uses '60 Minutes' To Unveil Automated Delivery Drones|last=Steinberg|first=Brian|date=February 12, 2012|work=Variety|access-date=March 10, 2018|archive-date=March 11, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311081243/http://variety.com/2013/biz/news/amazon-uses-60-minutes-to-unveil-automated-delivery-drones-1200907633/|url-status=live}} Throughout the early 2000s, he was perceived to be geeky or nerdy.{{cite news|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/50541/inside-mind-jeff-bezos-4|title=Inside the Mind of Jeff Bezos|last=Deutschman|first=Alan|date=August 1, 2004|magazine=Fast Company|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=February 26, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226211555/https://www.fastcompany.com/50541/inside-mind-jeff-bezos-4|url-status=live}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MxnrDQAAQBAJ|title=Geektionary: From Anime to Zettabyte, An A to Z Guide to All Things Geek|last1=Bergman|first1=Gregory|last2=Lambert|first2=Josh|year=2010|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=978-1-4405-1188-2|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=August 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803160251/https://books.google.com/books?id=MxnrDQAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://mashable.com/2017/10/20/jeff-bezos-old-photos|title=If Jeff Bezos really wanted to rule the world, he'd pose for corny photos like he used to|last=Bryan|first=Chloe|work=Mashable|date=October 20, 2017|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310010128/https://mashable.com/2017/10/20/jeff-bezos-old-photos/|url-status=live}}

Bezos was seen by some as needlessly quantitative and data-driven.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/retailwire/2013/10/22/is-jeff-bezos-a-horrible-boss-and-is-that-good|title=Is Jeff Bezos a Horrible Boss and Is That Good?|last=Anderson|first=George|magazine=Forbes|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 9, 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180309183508/https://www.forbes.com/sites/retailwire/2013/10/22/is-jeff-bezos-a-horrible-boss-and-is-that-good/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/why-trump-went-after-bezos-two-billionaires-across-a-cultural-divide/2018/04/05/22bb94c2-3763-11e8-acd5-35eac230e514_story.html|title=Why Trump went after Bezos: Two billionaires across a cultural divide|last=Fisher|first=Marc|date=April 4, 2018|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=April 6, 2018|archive-date=April 5, 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180405223910/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/why-trump-went-after-bezos-two-billionaires-across-a-cultural-divide/2018/04/05/22bb94c2-3763-11e8-acd5-35eac230e514_story.html|url-status=live}} This perception was detailed by Alan Deutschman, who described him as "talking in lists" and "[enumerating] the criteria, in order of importance, for every decision he has made". Select accounts of his persona have drawn controversy and public attention. Notably, journalist Brad Stone wrote a book that described Bezos as a demanding boss as well as hyper-competitive, and opined that Bezos perhaps "bet the biggest on the Internet" out of anyone.{{Cite video |title=The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon, Brad Stone, Talks at Google |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVZpqCkA00g |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301063855/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVZpqCkA00g |archive-date=March 1, 2021 |access-date=February 9, 2021 |date=October 31, 2013 |via=YouTube |time=16m43s |url-status=live}} Bezos has been characterized as a notoriously opportunistic CEO who operates with little concern for obstacles and externalities.{{cite web|url=https://www.inc.com/business-insider/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-leadership-management-style-work-culture.html|title=9 Shocking Anecdotes That Reveal Jeff Bezos's Cutthroat Management Style |last=Caine |first=Aine |date=November 14, 2017|work=Inc.com|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=January 14, 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190114072023/https://www.inc.com/business-insider/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-leadership-management-style-work-culture.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://fortune.com/amazon-jeff-bezos-prime |title=How Jeff Bezos Became a Power Beyond Amazon|last=Lashinsky|first=Adam|work=Fortune|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310010214/http://fortune.com/amazon-jeff-bezos-prime/|url-status=live}}

During the early 2010s, Bezos solidified his reputation for aggressive business practices, and his public image began to shift. Bezos started to wear tailored clothing; he weight trained, pursued a regimented diet and began to freely spend his money.{{cite web|url=http://nymag.com/selectall/2017/11/jeff-bezos-used-to-eat-a-lot-of-pillsbury-biscuits.html|title=Guess How Many Pillsbury Biscuits Jeff Bezos Used to Eat Daily|last=Kircher|first=Madison Malone|work=Select All|date=November 16, 2017|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180309190006/http://nymag.com/selectall/2017/11/jeff-bezos-used-to-eat-a-lot-of-pillsbury-biscuits.html |url-status=live }} His physical transformation has been compared to the transformation of Amazon; he is often referred to as the metonym of the company.{{cite news|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/40525448/how-amazon-got-swole-just-like-ceo-jeff-bezos|title=How Amazon Got Swole Just Like CEO Jeff Bezos|last=Lidsky|first=David|date=February 27, 2018|magazine=Fast Company|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308041753/https://www.fastcompany.com/40525448/how-amazon-got-swole-just-like-ceo-jeff-bezos|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.mensfitness.com/life/entertainment/jeff-bezos-man-who-turned-amazon-empire|title=Jeff Bezos: The man who turned Amazon into an empire|magazine=Men's Fitness|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date=October 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027153817/https://www.mensjournal.com/health-fitness/jeff-bezos-man-who-turned-amazon-empire/|url-status=live}} Since 2017, he has been portrayed by Kyle Mooney and Steve Carell on Saturday Night Live, usually as an undercutting, domineering figure.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2018/11/18/snl-bald-steve-carell-plays-jeff-bezos-wont-stop-trolling-trump/|title=On SNL, a bald Steve Carell plays Jeff Bezos – and won't stop trolling Trump|last=Wang|first=Amy|date=November 18, 2018|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=November 19, 2018|archive-date=November 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181118213638/https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2018/11/18/snl-bald-steve-carell-plays-jeff-bezos-wont-stop-trolling-trump/|url-status=live}} His physical appearance increased the public's perception of him as a symbolically dominant figure in business and in popular culture, wherein he has been parodied as an enterprising supervillain.{{cite news|url=http://www.financialexpress.com/entertainment/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-stuns-everyone-with-his-new-macho-look-twitter-users-go-crazy-compare-him-with-the-rock-vin-diesel/764306|title=Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos stuns everyone with his macho look, Twitter users compare him with The Rock, Vin Diesel|date=July 15, 2017|newspaper=The Financial Express|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310075524/http://www.financialexpress.com/entertainment/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-stuns-everyone-with-his-new-macho-look-twitter-users-go-crazy-compare-him-with-the-rock-vin-diesel/764306/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jeff-bezoss-latest-sideline-has-lots-of-people-comparing-him-to-a-comic-book-supervillain-2018-02-20|title=Jeff Bezos's latest sideline has lots of people comparing him to a comic-book supervillain|website=MarketWatch|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310100959/https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jeff-bezoss-latest-sideline-has-lots-of-people-comparing-him-to-a-comic-book-supervillain-2018-02-20|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://dealbreaker.com/2018/02/jeff-bezos-who-is-not-a-super-villain-is-building-a-giant-clock-inside-a-mountain-because-hes-not-a-super-villain|title=Jeff Bezos, Who Is Not A Super-Villain, Is Building A Giant Clock Inside A Mountain, Because He's NOT A Super-Villain|last=McEnery|first=Thornton|work=Dealbreaker|access-date=March 9, 2018}}

In May 2014, the International Trade Union Confederation named Bezos the "World's Worst Boss", with its general secretary Sharan Burrow saying: "Jeff Bezos represents the inhumanity of employers who are promoting the North American corporate model",{{cite web|url=http://www.ituc-csi.org/amazon-s-jeff-bezos-wins-ituc-s|title=Amazon's Jeff Bezos Wins ITUC's World's Worst Boss Poll|publisher=International Trade Union Confederation|date=May 22, 2014|access-date=October 27, 2015|archive-date=October 1, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001113453/http://www.ituc-csi.org/amazon-s-jeff-bezos-wins-ituc-s|url-status=live}} while in 2019, Harvard Business Review, which ranked Bezos the best-performing CEO for 4 years in a row since 2014, did not rank him even in the top 100, citing Amazon's "relatively low ESG (environment, social, and governance) scores" that reflect "risks created by working conditions and employment policies, data security, and antitrust issues".{{r|hbrbest}}

During the late 2010s, Bezos reversed his reputation for being reluctant to spend money on non-business-related expenses. His relative lack of philanthropy compared to other billionaires has drawn a negative response from the public since 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-31/for-bezos-now-world-s-richest-philanthropy-is-saved-for-later|title=For Bezos, Now World's Richest, Philanthropy Is 'Saved for Later'|last=Bass|first=Diane|work=Bloomberg News|date=October 31, 2017|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180309120442/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-31/for-bezos-now-world-s-richest-philanthropy-is-saved-for-later|url-status=live}} Bezos has been known to publicly contest claims made in critical articles, as exemplified in 2015 when he sent a memo to employees denouncing a New York Times piece.{{cite news|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/10/amazon-responds-new-york-times/411232/|title=Amazon launches a scathing response to Times story|first=Krishnadev|last=Calamur|magazine=The Atlantic|date=October 19, 2015|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=September 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180915123231/https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/10/amazon-responds-new-york-times/411232/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/08/17/432555175/jeff-bezos-responds-to-new-york-times-report-on-amazons-workplace|title=Jeff Bezos responds to 'New York Times' report on Amazon's workplace|publisher=NPR|date=August 17, 2015|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=September 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180915001739/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/08/17/432555175/jeff-bezos-responds-to-new-york-times-report-on-amazons-workplace|url-status=live}}

{{quote box

| title = "Day 1" Management Philosophy

| quote = Day 1: start up
Day 2: stasis
Day 3: irrelevance
Day 4: "excruciating, painful decline"
Day 5: death

| source = Bezos has stated "it is always Day 1" to describe his growth mindset.{{cite news|url=https://www.recode.net/2017/4/12/15274220/jeff-bezos-amazon-shareholders-letter-day-2-disagree-and-commit|title=This is the Jeff Bezos playbook for preventing Amazon's demise|last=Del Ray|first=Jason|date=April 12, 2017|work=Recode|access-date=April 22, 2018|archive-date=April 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180420151228/https://www.recode.net/2017/4/12/15274220/jeff-bezos-amazon-shareholders-letter-day-2-disagree-and-commit |url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/amazons-bezos-could-teach-large-companies-a-thing-or-two-about-strategy-2017-04-20|title=Amazon's Bezos could teach large companies a thing or two about strategy|last=Atsmon|first=Yuval|date=April 22, 2017|website=MarketWatch|access-date=April 22, 2018|archive-date=April 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180423034019/https://www.marketwatch.com/story/amazons-bezos-could-teach-large-companies-a-thing-or-two-about-strategy-2017-04-20|url-status=live}}

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}}Bezos used what he called a "regret-minimization framework" while working at D. E. Shaw and again during the early years of Amazon. He described this life philosophy by stating: "When I'm 80, am I going to regret leaving Wall Street? No. Will I regret missing the beginning of the Internet? Yes."{{cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/1999/03/bezos-3|title=The Inner Bezos|last=Bayers|first=Chip|magazine=Wired|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date=March 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180320200110/https://www.wired.com/1999/03/bezos-3/|url-status=live}} During the 1990s and early 2000s at Amazon, he was characterized as trying to quantify all aspects of running the company, often listing employees on spreadsheets and basing executive decisions on data. To push Amazon forward, Bezos developed the mantra "Get Big Fast", establishing the company's need to scale its operations to produce market dominance. He favored diverting Amazon profits back into the company in lieu of allocating it amongst shareholders in the form of dividends.

Bezos uses the term "work–life harmony" instead of the more standard "work–life balance" because he believes that balance implies that you can only have one and not the other. He believes that work and home life are interconnected, informing and calibrating each other.{{cite news|url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/05/jeff-bezos-guide-to-life|title=Jeff Bezos' guide to life|newspaper=TechCrunch|last=Constine|first=Josh|access-date=March 7, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308042146/https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/05/jeff-bezos-guide-tco-life/|url-status=live}} Journalist Walt Mossberg dubbed the idea that someone who cannot tolerate criticism or critique should not do anything new or interesting "The Bezos Principle".{{cite web|url=https://boingboing.net/2016/06/01/what-amazons-jeff-bezos-thin.html|title=What Amazon's Jeff Bezos thinks about Peter Thiel and Hulk Hogan vs. Gawker|website=Boing Boing|date=June 2, 2016|last=Mossberg|first=Walt|access-date=April 22, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180423102143/https://boingboing.net/2016/06/01/what-amazons-jeff-bezos-thin.html|archive-date=April 23, 2018}} Bezos does not schedule early morning meetings and enforces a two-pizza rule—a preference that meetings are small enough for two pizzas to feed everyone in the boardroom.{{cite web|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-daily-routine-2017-7?op=0#when-he-does-call-a-meeting-bezos-employs-a-two-pizza-rule-he-never-organizes-a-meeting-where-two-pizzas-couldnt-feed-the-entire-group-5|title=A day in the life of the richest person in history, Jeff Bezos – who made $6.44 billion in one day and still washes the dishes after dinner|last=Caine|first=Aline|work=Business Insider|access-date=March 7, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308042243/http://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-daily-routine-2017-7?op=0#when-he-does-call-a-meeting-bezos-employs-a-two-pizza-rule-he-never-organizes-a-meeting-where-two-pizzas-couldnt-feed-the-entire-group-5|archive-date=March 8, 2018}} When interviewing candidates for jobs at Amazon, he has stated he considers three inquiries: can he admire the person, can the person raise the common standard, and under what circumstances could the person become exemplary.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/01/jeff-bezos-questions-amazon-used-to-hire-employees.html|title=This is Jeff Bezos' 3-question test for new Amazon employees|publisher=CNBC|date=August 1, 2018|last=Montag|first=Ali|access-date=August 7, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180808043447/https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/01/jeff-bezos-questions-amazon-used-to-hire-employees.html|archive-date=August 8, 2018}}

In 2018, it was reported that he met with Amazon investors for just six hours a year. Instead of using presentation slides, Bezos requires high-level employees to present information with six-page narratives.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/20/technology/kevin-week-in-tech-bezos.html|title=Kevin's Week in Tech: Jeff Bezos Reminds Tech Who's Boss|newspaper=The New York Times|date=April 20, 2018|last=Roose|first=Kevin|access-date=April 21, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180420152313/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/20/technology/kevin-week-in-tech-bezos.html|archive-date=April 20, 2018}} Since 1998, Bezos has published an annual letter for Amazon shareholders wherein he frequently refers to five principles: focus on customers, not competitors; take risks for market leadership; facilitate staff morale; build a company culture; and empower people.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/13/5-key-business-lessons-from-amazons-jeff-bezos.html|title=5 key business lessons from Amazon's Jeff Bezos|publisher=CNBC|date=January 12, 2017|first=Tim|last=Mullaney|access-date=March 7, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308042718/https://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/13/5-key-business-lessons-from-amazons-jeff-bezos.html|archive-date=March 8, 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://fortune.com/2017/04/14/data-sheet-be-like-jeff-bezos|title=What Makes Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Such a Visionary Leader|work=Fortune|last=Lashinsky|first=Adam|access-date=March 7, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180311064600/http://fortune.com/2017/04/14/data-sheet-be-like-jeff-bezos/|archive-date=March 11, 2018}} Bezos maintains the email address jeff@amazon.com{{cite news|title=Jeff Bezos keeps his Amazon email address public{{snd}}here's why|date=November 23, 2020|website=CNBC News|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/23/jeff-bezos-keeps-his-amazon-email-address-public.html|access-date=February 3, 2021|archive-date=January 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116215851/https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/23/jeff-bezos-keeps-his-amazon-email-address-public.html|url-status=live}} as an outlet for customers to reach out to him and the company. Although he does not respond to the emails, he forwards some of them with a question mark in the subject line to executives, who then attempt to address the issues.{{cite news|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/bezos-explains-his-dreaded-one-character-emails-2018-4|title=Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos explains his famous one-character emails, known to strike fear in manager's hearts|magazine=Business Insider|date=April 21, 2018|last=Bort|first=Julie|access-date=April 21, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180421234437/http://www.businessinsider.com/bezos-explains-his-dreaded-one-character-emails-2018-4|archive-date=April 21, 2018}} Bezos has cited Jeff Immelt of New Enterprise Associates,{{Cite magazine |title=The Numbers in Jeff Bezos's Head |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141015143642/http://hbr.org/2014/11/the-best-performing-ceos-in-the-world/ar/1 |url=http://hbr.org/2014/11/the-best-performing-ceos-in-the-world/ar/1 |archive-date=October 15, 2014 |date=November 2014 |first1=Daniel |last1=McGinn |magazine=Harvard Business Review |access-date=February 11, 2021 |url-status=live }} Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway, Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, and Bob Iger of The Walt Disney Company as major influences on his leadership style.{{r|hbrn14}}{{cite web|url=https://www.bushcenter.org/takeover/sessions/forum-leadership/bezos-closing-conversation.html|title=Forum on Leadership: Conversation with Jeff Bezos|website=Bush Center|date=April 20, 2018|last=Hersh|first=Kenneth|access-date=April 22, 2018|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190122141258/https://www.bushcenter.org/takeover/sessions/forum-leadership/bezos-closing-conversation.html|archive-date=January 22, 2019}}

• In 1999, Bezos received his first major award when Time named him Person of the Year.{{cite news|url=http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,992927,00.html|title=Jeffrey Preston Bezos: 1999 Person of the year|magazine=Time|first=Joshua|last=Cooper Ramo|date=December 27, 1999|access-date=April 22, 2006|archive-date=August 18, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060818122654/http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,992927,00.html|url-status=dead}}
• In 2008, he was selected by U.S. News & World Report as one of America's best leaders.{{cite news|url=https://www.usnews.com/articles/news/best-leaders/2008/11/19/americas-best-leaders-jeff-bezos-amazoncom-ceo.html|title=America's Best Leaders: Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com.com CEO|website=U.S. News & World Report|first=David|last=LaGesse|date=November 19, 2008|access-date=November 25, 2008|archive-date=December 30, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081230043922/http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/best-leaders/2008/11/19/americas-best-leaders-jeff-bezos-amazoncom-ceo.html|url-status=live}}
• Bezos was awarded an honorary doctorate in science and technology from Carnegie Mellon University in 2008.{{cite web|url=https://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april22_jeffbezos.shtml|title=April 22: Amazon.com Founder Jeff Bezos to Speak at Carnegie Mellon Business School and Computer Science Diploma Ceremonies|website=Carnegie Mellon University|access-date=March 6, 2018|archive-date=April 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420124641/https://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april22_jeffbezos.shtml|url-status=live}}
• In 2011, The Economist gave Bezos and Gregg Zehr an Innovation Award for the Amazon Kindle.{{cite news|url=http://www.economistconferences.co.uk/press-release/charging-ahead-e-book-design-and-popularity-win-kindle-creators-innovation-award/5908|title=Charging ahead: e-book design and popularity win Kindle creators Innovation Award|newspaper=The Economist|date=September 19, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120414143656/http://www.economistconferences.co.uk/press-release/charging-ahead-e-book-design-and-popularity-win-kindle-creators-innovation-award/5908|archive-date=April 14, 2012}}
• In 2012, Bezos was named Businessperson of the Year by Fortune.{{cite web|url=http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2012/11/16/jeff-bezos-amazon|title=Amazon's Jeff Bezos: The ultimate disrupter|last=Lashinsky|first=Adam|website=Fortune|access-date=August 10, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130809040922/http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2012/11/16/jeff-bezos-amazon|archive-date=August 9, 2013}}
• He is also a member of the Bilderberg Group and attended the 2011 Bilderberg conference in St. Moritz, Switzerland,{{cite web|url=http://www.bilderbergmeetings.org/participants_2011.html|title=Bilderberg 2011 list of participants|publisher=BilderbergMeetings.org|access-date=August 24, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110828210925/http://www.bilderbergmeetings.org/participants_2011.html|archive-date=August 28, 2011}} and the 2013 conference in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. He was a member of the executive committee of The Business Council for 2011 and 2012, and appointed as chairman of the organization in 2014.{{Cite news |last=Harrison |first=J. D. |date=2023-04-16 |title=Amazon's Jeff Bezos appointed chairman of Washington-based Business Council |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/on-small-business/amazons-jeff-bezos-appointed-chairman-of-washington-based-business-council/2014/10/20/14a59828-5635-11e4-809b-8cc0a295c773_story.html |access-date=2024-06-24 |newspaper=Washington Post |language=en-US |issn=0190-8286}}
• Between 2014 and 2018, he was ranked the best-performing CEO in the world by Harvard Business Review.{{cite magazine |url=https://hbr.org/2019/11/the-best-performing-ceos-in-the-world-2019 |title=The Best-Performing CEOs in the World, 2019 |newspaper=Harvard Business Review |date=November 2019 |access-date=February 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210210142359/https://hbr.org/2019/11/the-best-performing-ceos-in-the-world-2019 |archive-date=February 10, 2021 |url-status=live }}
• He has also figured in Fortune{{'}}s list of 50 great leaders of the world for three straight years, topping the list in 2015.{{Cite news|url=http://fortune.com/2014/03/20/worlds-50-greatest-leaders|title=The World's 50 Greatest Leaders (2014)|work=Fortune|access-date=March 20, 2014|archive-date=February 23, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223233458/http://fortune.com/2014/03/20/worlds-50-greatest-leaders/|url-status=live}}
• In September 2016, Bezos received a $250,000 prize for winning the Heinlein Prize for Advances in Space Commercialization,{{Cite web |date=June 21, 2016 |title=Bezos wins Heinlein Prize commercial space award |url=https://spacenews.com/bezos-wins-heinlein-prize-commercial-space-award/ |access-date=April 17, 2023 |website=SpaceNews |archive-date=November 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231104133736/https://spacenews.com/bezos-wins-heinlein-prize-commercial-space-award/ |url-status=live }} which he donated to the Students for the Exploration and Development of Space.{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2016/09/15/jeff-bezos-on-nuclear-reactors-in-space-the-lack-of-bacon-on-mars-and-humanitys-destiny-in-the-solar-system |title=Jeff Bezos on nuclear reactors in space, the lack of bacon on Mars and humanity's destiny in the solar system |last=Davenport |first=Christian |date=September 15, 2016 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=September 16, 2016 |archive-date=September 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915230611/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2016/09/15/jeff-bezos-on-nuclear-reactors-in-space-the-lack-of-bacon-on-mars-and-humanitys-destiny-in-the-solar-system/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web | last=Today | first=James Dean - Florida | title=Bezos receives Heinlein Prize for Blue Origin progress | website=heinleinprizetrust | date=2016-09-28 | url=https://www.heinleinprize.com/single-post/2016/09/28/bezos-receives-heinlein-prize-for-blue-origin-progress | access-date=2024-02-19 | archive-date=February 19, 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219021213/https://www.heinleinprize.com/single-post/2016/09/28/bezos-receives-heinlein-prize-for-blue-origin-progress | url-status=live }}
• In February 2018, Bezos was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for "leadership and innovation in space exploration, autonomous systems, and building a commercial pathway for human space flight".{{cite web|url=https://www.nae.edu/MediaRoom/20095/177353/178117.aspx|title=National Academy of Engineering Elects 83 Members and 16 Foreign Members|website=National Academy of Engineering|access-date=February 9, 2018|archive-date=February 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180208123526/https://www.nae.edu/MediaRoom/20095/177353/178117.aspx|url-status=live}}
• In March 2018, at the Explorers Club annual dinner, he was awarded the Buzz Aldrin Space Exploration Award in recognition of his work with Blue Origin.{{Cite web |last=Boyle |first=Alan |date=July 17, 2017 |title=Jeff Bezos gets a kick out of winning the first Buzz Aldrin Space Innovation Award |url=https://www.geekwire.com/2017/jeff-bezos-buzz-aldrin-space-innovation-award/ |access-date=August 4, 2022 |website=GeekWire |language=en-US |archive-date=September 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220924134925/https://www.geekwire.com/2017/jeff-bezos-buzz-aldrin-space-innovation-award/ |url-status=live }}
• He received Germany's 2018 Axel Springer Award for Business Innovation and Social Responsibility.{{cite news|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-responded-to-reports-on-amazon-warehouse-working-conditions-2018-4|title=Jeff Bezos responded to reports of poor working conditions at Amazon – here's what he said|last=Schwär|first=Hannah|date=April 26, 2018|work=Business Insider|access-date=April 26, 2018|archive-date=April 27, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180427044518/http://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-responded-to-reports-on-amazon-warehouse-working-conditions-2018-4|url-status=live}} Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world on five separate occasions between 2008 and 2018.{{cite news|url=https://time.com/collection/most-influential-people-2018/5217562/jeff-bezos-3/|title=Jeff Bezos: The World's 100 Most Influential People|last=Dimon|first=Jamie|date=April 26, 2018|magazine=Time|access-date=April 26, 2018|archive-date=April 26, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426013225/http://time.com/collection/most-influential-people-2018/5217562/jeff-bezos-3/|url-status=live}}
• In 2019, Bezos was inducted into the Living Legends of Aviation, being awarded with the Jeff Bezos Freedom's Wings Award and the Kenn Ricci Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award.{{Cite press release |last=Academy |first=Kiddie Hawk Air |title=Jeff Bezos headlines newest class of inductees into Living Legends of Aviation |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/jeff-bezos-headlines-newest-class-of-inductees-into-living-legends-of-aviation-300774500.html |access-date=April 16, 2023 |website=www.prnewswire.com |language=en |archive-date=April 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416232521/https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/jeff-bezos-headlines-newest-class-of-inductees-into-living-legends-of-aviation-300774500.html |url-status=live }}
• In February 2023, Bezos was presented with the Légion d'honneur, the highest French order of merit. Bezos had been designated a member of the Légion d'Honneur about 10 years earlier but was not available to collect it.{{cite news |title=Emmanuel Macron criticised for giving Légion d'honneur to Jeff Bezos |newspaper=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/23/emmanuel-macron-criticised-for-ceremony-giving-jeff-bezos-legion-dhonneur |date=February 23, 2023 |last1=Willsher |first1=Kim |access-date=February 24, 2023 |archive-date=February 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230224160800/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/23/emmanuel-macron-criticised-for-ceremony-giving-jeff-bezos-legion-dhonneur |url-status=live }}

Bezos first became a millionaire in 1997 after raising $54 million through Amazon's initial public offering (IPO).{{cite web|url=https://www.inc.com/business-insider/when-billionaires-made-their-first-million.html|title=The Age When 17 Self-Made Billionaires Earned Their First Million|last=Elkins|first=Kathleen|date=February 11, 2016|website=Inc.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308025254/https://www.inc.com/business-insider/when-billionaires-made-their-first-million.html|url-status=live}} He was first included on the Forbes World's Billionaires list in 1999 with an estimated net worth of $10.1 billion, which placed his on the 19th position in the world and 10th in the USA.{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx99xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 1999|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=December 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171205115311/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx99xwor.htm|url-status=live}} His net worth decreased to $6.1 billion a year later, a 40.5% drop.{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx00xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 2000|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=April 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180408224556/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx00xwor.htm|url-status=live}} His wealth plummeted even more the following year, dropping 66.6% to $2.0 billion.{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx01xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 2001|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=December 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206224300/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx01xwor.htm|url-status=live}} He lost $500 million the following year, which brought his net worth down to $1.5 billion.{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx02xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 2002|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316074934/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx02xwor.htm|url-status=live}} The following year, his net worth increased by 66.66% to $2.5 billion.{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx03xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 2003|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180305203717/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx03xwor.htm|url-status=live}} From 2005 to 2007, he quadrupled his net worth to $8.7 billion.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/10/Rank_6.html|title=The World's Richest People|magazine=Forbes|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308165605/https://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/10/Rank_6.html|url-status=live}} After the 2008 financial crisis and Great Recession, his net worth would decrease to $6.8 billion—a 17.7% drop.{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx09xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 2009|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180305183346/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx09xwor.htm|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx08xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 2008|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180307172837/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx08xwor.htm|url-status=live}} His wealth rose by 85.2% in 2010, leaving him with $12.6 billion. This percentage increase ascended him to the 43rd spot on the ranking from 68th.{{cite web|url=http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx10xwor.htm|title=World's Billionaire List 2010|last=Casais|first=Eduardo|website=stats.areppim.com|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180305190116/http://stats.areppim.com/listes/list_billionairesx10xwor.htm|url-status=live}}

After a rumor broke out that Amazon was developing a smartphone, Bezos's net worth rose to $30.5 billion in 2014.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanmac/2014/06/05/bezos-net-worth-rises-1-4-billion-on-rumors-of-3-d-amazon-smartphone|title=Jeff Bezos' Net Worth Rises $1.4 Billion on Rumors of 3-D Amazon Smartphone|last=Mac|first=Ryan|magazine=Forbes|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308165438/https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanmac/2014/06/05/bezos-net-worth-rises-1-4-billion-on-rumors-of-3-d-amazon-smartphone/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-04-21/jeff-bezoss-net-worth-dives-in-2014|title=Jeff Bezos's Net Worth Dives in 2014|last=Summers|first=Nick|work=Bloomberg News|date=April 21, 2014|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308230646/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-04-21/jeff-bezoss-net-worth-dives-in-2014|url-status=live}} A year later, he entered the top ten when he increased his net worth to a total of $50.3 billion. Bezos rose to become the fifth richest person in the world hours before market close; he gained $7 billion in one hour.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2015/07/23/jeff-bezos-just-gained-7-billion-in-an-hour-to-become-worlds-fifth-richest|title=Jeff Bezos Just Gained $7 Billion in an Hour to Become World's Fifth Richest|last=Vinton|first=Kate|magazine=Forbes|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308170035/https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2015/07/23/jeff-bezos-just-gained-7-billion-in-an-hour-to-become-worlds-fifth-richest/|url-status=live}} By the time the Forbes list was calculated in March 2016, his net worth was registered at $45.2 billion.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2016/03/01/the-full-list-of-every-american-billionaire-2016|title=The Full List of Every American Billionaire 2016|last=Peterson-Withorn|first=Chase|magazine=Forbes|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308165450/https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2016/03/01/the-full-list-of-every-american-billionaire-2016/|url-status=live}} However, just months later in October 2016, his wealth increased by $16.2 billion to $66.5 billion, unofficially ranking him the third-richest person in the world, behind Warren Buffett.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2016/07/28/jeff-bezos-net-worth-hits-record-high-as-fortune-jumps-2-6-billion|title=Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' Net Worth Hits Record High As Fortune Jumps $2.6 Billion|last=Vinton|first=Kate|magazine=Forbes|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308170056/https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2016/07/28/jeff-bezos-net-worth-hits-record-high-as-fortune-jumps-2-6-billion/|url-status=live}} After sporadic jumps in Amazon's share price, in July 2017 he briefly unseated Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates as the wealthiest person in the world.{{cite news|url=https://money.com/richest-people-in-the-world/|title=The Richest People in the World|last=Calfas|first=Jennifer|magazine=Money|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=August 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819182138/https://money.com/richest-people-in-the-world/|url-status=live}}

File:Net worth of Jeff Bezos from 1999 to 2018.png of Jeff Bezos from 1999 to 2018 as estimated by Forbes magazine, in the nominal U.S. dollar. His net worth is calculated in the billions by March of each year.]]

Bezos would continue to sporadically surpass Gates throughout the month of October 2017 after Amazon's share price fluctuated.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2017/10/27/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-is-the-richest-person-in-the-world-again|title=Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Is the Richest Person in the World – Again|last=Vinton|first=Kate|magazine=Forbes|access-date=October 3, 2017|archive-date=October 27, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171027170831/https://www.forbes.com/sites/katevinton/2017/10/27/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-is-the-richest-person-in-the-world-again/|url-status=live}} His net worth surpassed $100 billion for the first time on November 24, 2017, after Amazon's share price increased by more than 2.5%.{{cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/11/24/technology/jeff-bezos-100-billion/index.html|title=Jeff Bezos is now worth $100 billion|last=Isidore|first=Chris|publisher=CNN|access-date=December 29, 2017|archive-date=December 29, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171229131618/http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/24/technology/jeff-bezos-100-billion/index.html|url-status=live}} When the 2017 list was issued, Bezos's net worth was registered at $72.8 billion, adding $27.6 billion from the previous year.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2017/03/20/forbes-2017-billionaires-list-meet-the-richest-people-on-the-planet|title=Forbes 2017 Billionaires List: Meet The Richest People on the Planet |last=Dolan|first=Kerry A.|magazine=Forbes|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308165415/https://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2017/03/20/forbes-2017-billionaires-list-meet-the-richest-people-on-the-planet/|url-status=live}} His wealth's rapid growth from 2016 to 2017 sparked a variety of assessments about how much money Bezos earned on a controlled, reduced time scale. On October 10, 2017, he made an estimated $6.24 billion in 5 minutes, slightly less than the then annual gross domestic product of Kyrgyzstan.{{cite news|url=https://www.inc.com/bill-murphy-jr/jeff-bezos-made-62-billion-in-5-minutes-became-worlds-richest-person-how-was-your-thursday.html|title=Jeff Bezos Made $6.2 Billion in 5 Minutes and Became the World's Richest Person (How Was Your Thursday?)|last=Murphy|first=Bill|date=October 27, 2017|magazine=Inc.|access-date=April 29, 2018|archive-date=May 2, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180502161733/https://www.inc.com/bill-murphy-jr/jeff-bezos-made-62-billion-in-5-minutes-became-worlds-richest-person-how-was-your-thursday.html|url-status=live}}

On March 6, 2018, Bezos was designated the wealthiest person in the world, with a registered net worth of $112 billion.{{cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/trump-slumps-down-forbes-annual-list-billionaires-bezos-rises-top-n854141|title=America produced the largest number of billionaires in the world|last=Bayly|first=Lucy|date=March 6, 2018|publisher=NBC News|access-date=April 30, 2018|archive-date=April 25, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180425001238/https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/trump-slumps-down-forbes-annual-list-billionaires-bezos-rises-top-n854141|url-status=live}} He unseated Bill Gates ($90 billion), who was $6 billion ahead of Warren Buffett ($84 billion), ranked third.{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/forbes-2018-list-of-worlds-billionaires|title=Jeff Bezos moves to top spot on Forbes' annual billionaires list|publisher=CBS News|access-date=March 6, 2018|archive-date=March 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180306165128/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/forbes-2018-list-of-worlds-billionaires/|url-status=live}} He is considered the first registered centi-billionaire (not adjusted for inflation).{{efn|Although Bill Gates momentarily surpassed the $100 billion net worth mark in April 1999 before the Dot-com bubble,{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2018/01/09/heres-why-jeff-bezos-is-not-truly-the-richest-person-in-history|title=Here's Why Jeff Bezos Is Not Truly The Richest Person in History|last=Kirsch|first=Noah|magazine=Forbes|access-date=April 4, 2018|archive-date=April 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405025758/https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2018/01/09/heres-why-jeff-bezos-is-not-truly-the-richest-person-in-history/|url-status=live}} Bezos was the first to register $100 billion with major wealth indexes and has retained the wealth for longer than Gates's three weeks.{{cite news|url=http://fortune.com/2018/03/09/jeff-bezos-net-worth-jump|title=Jeff Bezos Had a Record-Breaking One-Year Net Worth Jump|work=Fortune|access-date=April 4, 2018|archive-date=March 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312213706/http://fortune.com/2018/03/09/jeff-bezos-net-worth-jump/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/luisakroll/2018/03/06/forbes-billionaires-2018-meet-the-richest-people-on-the-planet|title=Forbes Billionaires 2018: Meet The Richest People on the Planet|last=Kroll|first=Luisa|magazine=Forbes|access-date=April 4, 2018|archive-date=April 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180404014827/https://www.forbes.com/sites/luisakroll/2018/03/06/forbes-billionaires-2018-meet-the-richest-people-on-the-planet/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=http://www.financialexpress.com/market/jeff-bezos-worlds-first-centibillionaire-amazon-boss-journey-to-beat-bill-gates-to-the-top-of-fobres-list/1093600|title=Jeff Bezos world's first centibillionaire: Amazon boss' journey to beat Bill Gates to the top of Forbes list|date=April 4, 2018|newspaper=The Financial Express|access-date=April 4, 2018|archive-date=April 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405025041/http://www.financialexpress.com/market/jeff-bezos-worlds-first-centibillionaire-amazon-boss-journey-to-beat-bill-gates-to-the-top-of-fobres-list/1093600/|url-status=live}}}}

His wealth, in 2017–18 terms, equaled that of 2.7 million Americans.{{cite web|url=https://www.maxim.com/news/forbes-jeff-bezos-richest-billionaire-2018-3|title=Jeff Bezos Is Worth $112 Billion, Overtaking Bill Gates as the Richest Man in the World|last=Freeman|first=Thomas|website=Maxim|date=March 7, 2018|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=October 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191025062035/https://www.maxim.com/news/forbes-jeff-bezos-richest-billionaire-2018-3|url-status=live}} Bezos's net worth increased by $33.6 billion from January 2017 to January 2018. This increase outstripped the economic development (in GDP terms) of more than 96 countries around the world.{{cite web|url=http://www.valuewalk.com/2018/03/jeff-bezos-richest-man| title=Bezos' Billions: The Wealth of a 'Centi-Billionaire'|date=March 7, 2018|website=ValueWalk|access-date=March 8, 2018}} During March 9, Bezos earned $230,000 every 60 seconds.{{cite magazine|url=http://time.com/money/5192998/jeff-bezos-net-worth-2018-worlds-richest-man|title=Jeff Bezos Is Making an Insane $230,000 a Minute Right Now|last=Tuttle|first=Brad|magazine=Money|access-date=March 28, 2018|archive-date=March 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180329100352/http://time.com/money/5192998/jeff-bezos-net-worth-2018-worlds-richest-man/ |url-status=dead }} The Motley Fool estimated that if Bezos had not sold any of his shares from its original public offering in 1997, his net worth would sit at $181 billion in 2018.{{cite web|url=https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/02/28/heres-what-amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-would-be-worth-if.aspx|title=Here's How Much Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Would Be Worth if He Never Sold a Single Share|last=Williams|first=Sean|website=The Motley Fool|date=February 28, 2018|access-date=March 8, 2018|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308231529/https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/02/28/heres-what-amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-would-be-worth-if.aspx|url-status=live}} According to Quartz, his net worth of $150 billion in July 2018 was enough to purchase the entire stock markets of Nigeria, Hungary, Egypt, Luxembourg, and Iran.{{cite news|url=https://qz.com/1330631/jeff-bezos-is-now-worth-150-billion-as-much-as-many-entire-stock-markets|title=Jeff Bezos is rich enough to buy many of the world's stock markets outright|last=Karaian|first=Jason|date=July 15, 2018|work=Quartz|access-date=July 15, 2018|archive-date=July 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180718234451/https://qz.com/1330631/jeff-bezos-is-now-worth-150-billion-as-much-as-many-entire-stock-markets/|url-status=live}} Following the report by Quartz, Amazon workers in Poland, (Germany), and Spain participated in demonstrations and labor strikes to draw attention to his growing wealth and the lack of compensation, labor rights, and satisfactory working conditions of select Amazon workers.{{cite news|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/07/jeff-bezoss-massive-wealth-becoming-a-problem|title=Is Jeff Bezos's Massive Wealth Becoming a Problem?|last=Kosoff|first=Maya|date=July 17, 2018|work=The Hive|access-date=July 17, 2018|archive-date=November 22, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181122024239/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/07/jeff-bezoss-massive-wealth-becoming-a-problem|url-status=live}} On July 17, 2018, he was designated the "wealthiest person in modern history"{{efn|Many calculations of Bezos's wealth during the late 2010s were not adjusted for inflation. When he was designated the "world wealthiest person" on March 6, 2018, the Forbes The World's Billionaires list stipulated that although Bezos was the first centi-billionaire (i.e. +US$100 billion in net worth), it was Bill Gates who had the most money when taken in real terms.{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2018/01/09/heres-why-jeff-bezos-is-not-truly-the-richest-person-in-history|title=Here's Why Jeff Bezos Is Not Truly The Richest Person in History|magazine=Forbes|date=March 6, 2018|last=Kirsch|first=Noah|access-date=July 17, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180719024955/https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2018/01/09/heres-why-jeff-bezos-is-not-truly-the-richest-person-in-history/|archive-date=July 19, 2018}} In such terms, Gates had $150 billion while Bezos had $100 billion. However, in July 2018, the net worth of Bezos officially surpassed the $150 billion mark, which led most major wealth indexes to label him the wealthiest person in modern history (post-1982).{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kathleenchaykowski/2018/07/17/jeff-bezos-net-worth-hits-record-151-billion-after-strong-amazon-prime-day|title=Jeff Bezos's Net Worth Hits Record $151 Billion After Strong Amazon 'Prime Day'|last=Chaykowski|first=Kathleen|date=July 17, 2018|magazine=Forbes|access-date=July 17, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180717233002/https://www.forbes.com/sites/kathleenchaykowski/2018/07/17/jeff-bezos-net-worth-hits-record-151-billion-after-strong-amazon-prime-day/|url-status=live|archive-date=July 17, 2018}}}} by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index,{{cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-16/happy-prime-day-jeff-amazon-ceo-s-net-worth-tops-150-billion|title=Jeff Bezos Becomes the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150 Billion|date=July 17, 2018|work=Bloomberg News|access-date=July 17, 2018|archive-date=July 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180716231622/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-16/happy-prime-day-jeff-amazon-ceo-s-net-worth-tops-150-billion|url-status=live}} Fortune,{{cite news|url=http://fortune.com/2018/07/16/jeff-bezos-richest-man|title=Jeff Bezos Is Now the Richest Man in Modern History, Topping $150 Billion|date=July 17, 2018|work=Fortune|access-date=July 17, 2018|archive-date=July 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180716232723/http://fortune.com/2018/07/16/jeff-bezos-richest-man/|url-status=live}} MarketWatch,{{cite news|url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jeff-bezos-becomes-the-richest-person-in-modern-history-amid-amazon-prime-day-kickoff-2018-07-16?link=MW_latest_news|title=Jeff Bezos becomes the richest person in modern history amid Amazon Prime Day kickoff|last=French|first=Sally|date=July 17, 2018|website=MarketWatch|access-date=July 17, 2018|archive-date=July 19, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180719054144/https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jeff-bezos-becomes-the-richest-person-in-modern-history-amid-amazon-prime-day-kickoff-2018-07-16?link=MW_latest_news|url-status=live}} The Wall Street Journal,{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/is-jeff-bezos-really-the-richest-of-them-all-1533893580|title=Is Jeff Bezos Really the Richest of Them All?|last=McGinty|first=Jo Craven|date=August 10, 2018|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=August 11, 2018|archive-date=August 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180810222316/https://www.wsj.com/articles/is-jeff-bezos-really-the-richest-of-them-all-1533893580|url-status=live}} and Forbes.

In 2019, Bezos's wealth was reduced by the divorce from his wife MacKenzie Bezos.{{cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-mackenzie-bezos-divorce-finalized-2019-4|title=Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Bezos have finalized their divorce agreement|work=Business Insider|date=April 4, 2019|first=Avery|last=Hartmans|access-date=April 4, 2019|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200212194904/https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-mackenzie-bezos-divorce-finalized-2019-4|archive-date=February 12, 2020}}{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46814557|title=World's richest man Jeff Bezos divorces|date=January 10, 2019|work=BBC News|access-date=February 8, 2019|archive-date=February 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209011036/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46814557|url-status=live}} According to Forbes, had the Washington state common law applied to their divorce without a prenuptial agreement, Bezos's wealth could have been equitably divided with his ex-wife;{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2019/01/09/jeff-bezos-worlds-richest-person-announces-divorce-after-25-years-of-marriage/|title=Jeff Bezos, World's Richest Person, Announces Divorce After 25 Years Of Marriage|last=Kirsch|first=Noah|date=January 9, 2019|magazine=Forbes|access-date=January 10, 2019|archive-date=January 10, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110235029/https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2019/01/09/jeff-bezos-worlds-richest-person-announces-divorce-after-25-years-of-marriage/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2019/01/10/who-mackenzie-bezos-she-may-soon-worlds-richest-woman/2536235002/|title=MacKenzie Bezos, author, philanthropist, and soon to be world's richest woman?|last=Snider|first=Mike|date=January 10, 2019|newspaper=USA Today|access-date=January 10, 2019|archive-date=January 10, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110233246/https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2019/01/10/who-mackenzie-bezos-she-may-soon-worlds-richest-woman/2536235002/|url-status=live}} however, she eventually received 25% of Bezos's Amazon shares, then valued at approximately $36 billion, making her the third-richest woman in the world. Bezos retained his interest in The Washington Post and Blue Origin, as well as voting control of the shares received by his ex-wife.{{cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-mackenzie-bezos-divorce-finalized-2019-4|title=Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Bezos have finalized their divorce agreement, and he's getting 75% of the Amazon shares and voting control of the rest|last=Hartmans|first=Avery|website=Business Insider|access-date=August 13, 2019|archive-date=April 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404180601/https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-mackenzie-bezos-divorce-finalized-2019-4|url-status=live}}

In June 2019, Bezos purchased three adjoining apartments overlooking Madison Square Park in Manhattan, including a penthouse, for a combined total of $80 million, making this one of the most expensive real estate purchases within New York City in 2019.{{cite news|url=https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/jeff-bezos-buys-three-manhattan-apartments-for-80-million-dollars|title=Jeff Bezos Buys Three Manhattan Apartments for $80 Million – The combined space totals 17,000 square feet|author=Jordi Lippe-Mcgraw|magazine=Architectural Digest|date=June 5, 2019|access-date=June 6, 2019|archive-date=June 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190607112918/https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/jeff-bezos-buys-three-manhattan-apartments-for-80-million-dollars|url-status=live}} Bezos had also purchased three adjoining apartments at 25 Central Park West in Manhattan for $7.65 million in 1999;{{cite web | last=Ciuraru | first=Carmela | title=Amazon's Jeff Bezos Stiffs Tommy Mottola In $7.65 Million Deal | website=Observer | date=October 4, 1999 | url=https://observer.com/1999/10/amazons-jeff-bezos-stiffs-tommy-mottola-in-765-million-deal/ | access-date=May 18, 2022 | archive-date=May 18, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518180222/https://observer.com/1999/10/amazons-jeff-bezos-stiffs-tommy-mottola-in-765-million-deal/ | url-status=live }}{{cite web | last=Gannon | first=Devin | title=Will Jeff Bezos live in one of his Upper West Side apartments when Amazon comes to town? | website=6sqft | date=November 15, 2018 | url=https://www.6sqft.com/will-jeff-bezos-live-in-one-of-his-upper-west-side-apartments-when-amazon-comes-to-town/ | access-date=May 18, 2022 | archive-date=May 18, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220518180222/https://www.6sqft.com/will-jeff-bezos-live-in-one-of-his-upper-west-side-apartments-when-amazon-comes-to-town/ | url-status=live }} he bought a fourth unit in that building for $5.3 million in 2012.

In February 2020, Bezos purchased the Warner Estate from David Geffen for $165 million,{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/jeff-bezos-buys-david-geffens-los-angeles-mansion-for-a-record-165-million-11581542020|title=Jeff Bezos Buys David Geffen's Los Angeles Mansion for a Record $165 Million|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=February 12, 2020|first1=Katy|last1=McLaughlin|first2=Katherine|last2=Clarke|access-date=February 14, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213220252/https://www.wsj.com/articles/jeff-bezos-buys-david-geffens-los-angeles-mansion-for-a-record-165-million-11581542020|archive-date=February 13, 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://news.sky.com/story/amazon-founder-jeff-bezos-buys-most-expensive-home-in-los-angeles-11933075|title=Amazon founder Jeff Bezos buys 'most expensive home' in Los Angeles|publisher=Sky News|date=February 13, 2020|access-date=February 14, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213225324/https://news.sky.com/story/amazon-founder-jeff-bezos-buys-most-expensive-home-in-los-angeles-11933075|archive-date=February 13, 2020}} a record price paid for a residence in the Los Angeles area. The previous record high price of $150 million was paid by Lachlan Murdoch for the Chartwell Mansion. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was reported that Bezos's fortune had grown by $24 billion, citing a surge in demand from households on lockdown shopping on Amazon.{{cite news|last=Evelyn|first=Kenya|date=April 15, 2020|title=Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos grows fortune by $24bn amid coronavirus pandemic|newspaper=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/15/amazon-jeff-bezos-gains-24bn-coronavirus-pandemic|url-status=live|access-date=April 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200415165201/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/15/amazon-jeff-bezos-gains-24bn-coronavirus-pandemic|archive-date=April 15, 2020}} He further expanded his residential holdings in February 2022, purchasing a $16.13-million-dollar apartment at a 24-story boutique condominium, located across from Madison Square Park in the Flatiron neighbourhood, where he already owns all the units on the top floors.{{Cite news|url=https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/jeff-bezos-drops-16-million-on-another-manhattan-pad-to-create-a-vertical-dream-home-214150?reflink=outbrain_editorial-kpio_008078469379c5885737ee7a8f4917f898&dicbo=v1-fe4fde943bfa31f569d0d105000eeee5-00f0464d4134b070538283435e8e7fd395-gvrtaztgmuywmllgmiygeljugzrgkllcge3tgljwgi4denbrgqzgkobqgq|title=Jeff Bezos Drops $16 Million on Another Manhattan Pad to Create a 'Vertical' Dream Home|date=April 17, 2020|access-date=February 15, 2022|archive-date=February 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220215005539/https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/jeff-bezos-drops-16-million-on-another-manhattan-pad-to-create-a-vertical-dream-home-214150?reflink=outbrain_editorial-kpio_008078469379c5885737ee7a8f4917f898&dicbo=v1-fe4fde943bfa31f569d0d105000eeee5-00f0464d4134b070538283435e8e7fd395-gvrtaztgmuywmllgmiygeljugzrgkllcge3tgljwgi4denbrgqzgkobqgq|url-status=live |last1=Block |first1=Fang }} Bezos is the owner of the Y721, a luxury superyacht estimated to cost more than $500,000,000; it is the largest yacht in the world.{{cite news |last1=Burack |first1=Emily |title=Rotterdam Is Dismantling a Historic Bridge for Jeff Bezos's Superyacht |url=https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/money-and-power/a38973492/jeff-bezos-yacht-bridge-rotterdam-destruction/ |access-date=February 3, 2022 |publisher=Town & Country |date=February 3, 2022 |archive-date=February 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220203185629/https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/money-and-power/a38973492/jeff-bezos-yacht-bridge-rotterdam-destruction/ |url-status=live }} According to Forbes Bezos was the second-wealthiest person in America and the third-wealthiest person in the world in 2023.{{cite web | url=https://www.forbes.com/forbes-400/ | title=Forbes 400 2023 | website=Forbes | access-date=February 27, 2024 | archive-date=February 13, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213224211/https://www.forbes.com/forbes-400/ | url-status=live }}{{cite web | url=https://www.forbes.com/billionaires/ | title=Forbes Billionaires 2023: The Richest People in the World | website=Forbes | access-date=May 8, 2017 | archive-date=January 4, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190104180124/https://www.forbes.com/billionaires/list/3/ | url-status=live }}{{cite web | url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/jeff-bezos/?list=forbes-400&sh=42e2c8fd1b23/ | title=Jeff Bezos | website=Forbes | access-date=February 27, 2024 | archive-date=February 27, 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240227175601/https://www.forbes.com/profile/jeff-bezos/?list=forbes-400&sh=42e2c8fd1b23/ | url-status=live }} Bezos is the second-wealthiest person in the world according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index. His net worth is about $197 billion as of February 2024.{{cite news | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/ | title=Bloomberg Billionaires Index | newspaper=Bloomberg | access-date=March 8, 2017 | archive-date=May 31, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170531225811/https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/ | url-status=live }}{{cite news | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/jeffrey-p-bezos/ | title=Bloomberg Billionaires Index | newspaper=Bloomberg | access-date=March 3, 2021 | archive-date=January 13, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180113120101/https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/jeffrey-p-bezos/ | url-status=live }}

Bezos is known for creating an adversarial environment at Amazon, as well as insulting and verbally abusing his employees. As journalist Brad Stone revealed in his book The Everything Store, Bezos issued remarks to his employees such as "I'm sorry, did I take my stupid pills today?", "Are you lazy or just incompetent?", and "Why are you ruining my life?" Additionally, Bezos reportedly pitted Amazon teams against each other, and once refused to give Amazon employees city bus passes in order to discourage them from leaving the office.

Throughout his early years of ownership of The Washington Post, Bezos was accused of having a potential conflict of interest with the paper.{{cite news |last1=Streitfeld |first1=David |last2=Haughney |first2=Christine |date=August 17, 2013 |title=Expecting the Unexpected From Jeff Bezos |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/18/business/expecting-the-unexpected-from-jeff-bezos.html |url-status=live |access-date=March 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180203080004/http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/18/business/expecting-the-unexpected-from-jeff-bezos.html |archive-date=February 3, 2018 |issn=0362-4331}} Bezos and the newspaper's editorial board have dismissed accusations that he unfairly controlled the paper's content, and Bezos maintains that the paper is independent.{{cite news |last=Block |first=Melissa |title=Washington Post' May Find Conflicts in Amazon Coverage |publisher=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=209584962 |url-status=live |access-date=March 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310135543/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=209584962 |archive-date=March 10, 2018}} Bezos' treatment of employees at The Washington Post has also drawn scrutiny.{{Cite web |last=Hamilton |first=Isobel Asher |date=June 15, 2018 |title=More than 400 Washington Post staffers wrote an open letter to Jeff Bezos calling out his 'shocking' pay practices |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/washington-post-staff-sent-fair-pay-petition-to-jeff-bezos-2018-6 |access-date=November 28, 2022 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US |archive-date=November 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221128201612/https://www.businessinsider.com/washington-post-staff-sent-fair-pay-petition-to-jeff-bezos-2018-6 |url-status=live }} In 2018, more than 400 Washington Post employees wrote an open letter to Bezos criticizing his poor wages and benefits for his employees. The letter demanded "Fair wages; fair benefits for retirement, family leave and health care; and a fair amount of job security". Around 750 employees at The Washington Post went on a brief strike in December 2023 in response to Bezos' plans to lay off staff.{{Cite news |last=Folkenflik |first=David |date=December 7, 2023 |title='Washington Post' journalists stage daylong strike under threat of job cuts |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/12/07/1217690720/washington-post-workers-strike |access-date=January 6, 2024 |work=NPR |archive-date=January 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240107032407/https://www.npr.org/2023/12/07/1217690720/washington-post-workers-strike |url-status=live }}

In 2024, Bezos blocked the Washington Post{{'}}s editorial board from endorsing Kamala Harris in the presidential election. The move was criticized by former editor Marty Baron, who considered it to be an act of "disturbing spinelessness at an institution famed for courage" and said that it would invite intimidation of Bezos by Donald Trump. Editor-at-large Robert Kagan and columnist Michele Norris also resigned in the wake of the decision, and editor David Maraniss said that the paper was "dying in darkness". Post opinion columnists jointly authored an article calling the decision to not endorse a "terrible mistake", and it was condemned by the Washington Post Guild, a union unit representing Post employees.{{Cite web |last1=Gold |first1=Hadas |last2=Stelter |first2=Brian |date=2024-10-25 |title=Washington Post won't endorse candidate in 2024 presidential election after Bezos decision |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/25/media/washington-post-wont-endorse-presidential-candidate/index.html |access-date=2024-10-25 |website=CNN |language=en}}{{Cite news |last1=Roig-Franzia |first1=Manuel |last2=Wagner |first2=Laura |date=2024-10-25 |title=The Washington Post says it will not endorse a candidate for president |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/2024/10/25/washington-post-endorsement-president/ |access-date=2024-10-25 |newspaper=Washington Post}}{{Cite web |last=Mangan |first=Dan |date=2024-10-25 |title=Jeff Bezos killed Washington Post endorsement of Kamala Harris, paper reports |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/25/jeff-bezos-killed-washington-post-endorsement-of-kamala-harris-.html |access-date=2024-10-26 |website=CNBC |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Chitwood |first=Adam |date=2024-10-27 |title=Washington Post Columnist Michele Norris Resigns Over Bezos Scrapping Harris Endorsement: 'A Terrible Mistake' |url=https://www.thewrap.com/washington-post-columnist-michele-norris-resigns/ |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=TheWrap |language=en-US}} More than 250,000 people (about ten percent of the Post{{'}}s subscribers) cancelled their subscriptions, and three members of the editorial board left the board.{{Cite news |last=Folkenflik |first=David |date=2024-10-29 |title=More than 250,000 subscribers have left 'Washington Post' over withheld endorsement |url=https://www.npr.org/2024/10/29/nx-s1-5170939/more-than-250-000-subscribers-have-left-washington-post-over-withheld-endorsement |access-date=2024-10-29 |work=NPR}}{{Cite web |last=Gold |first=Hadas |date=2024-10-28 |title=Three Washington Post editorial board members step down amid wave of canceled subscriptions over non-endorsement |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/28/media/washington-post-endorsement-subscribers-resign/index.html |access-date=2024-10-29 |website=CNN |language=en}}{{cite web |last=Helmore |first=Edward |date=2024-10-29 |title=Washington Post cancellations hit 250,000 – 10% of subscribers |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/oct/29/washington-post-subscriber-cancellations |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=The Guardian}} Condemning the Post{{'}}s decision, several columnists, including Will Bunch, Jonathan Last, Dan Froomkin, Donna Ladd and Sewell Chan, described it as an example of what historian Timothy Snyder calls anticipatory obedience.{{Cite news |last=Bunch |first=Will |date=2024-10-27 |title=Billionaire cowards at Washington Post, L.A. Times show what life under a dictator is really like |url=https://www.inquirer.com/opinion/commentary/washington-post-la-times-endorsements-trump-harris-20241027.html |access-date=2024-10-27 |work=The Philadelphia Inquirer}}{{Cite web |last=Froomkin |first=Dan |date=2024-10-25 |title=Billionaires have broken media: Washington Post's non-endorsement is a sickening moral collapse |url=https://www.salon.com/2024/10/25/billionaires-have-broken-media-washington-posts-non-endorsement-is-a-sickening-moral-collapse/ |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=Salon |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Last |first=Jonathan V. |date=2024-10-25 |title=The Guardrails Are Already Crumpling |url=https://www.thebulwark.com/p/bezos-kills-washington-post-endorsement-guardrails-falling |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=The Bulwark |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Chan |first=Sewell |date=2024-10-25 |title=The Washington Post opinion editor approved a Harris endorsement. A week later, Jeff Bezos killed it. |url=https://www.cjr.org/political_press/the-washington-post-opinion-editor-approved-a-harris-endorsement-a-week-later-the-papers-publisher-killed-it.php |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=Columbia Journalism Review |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Ladd |first=Donna |date=2024-10-26 |title=Editor's Note {{!}} As Fascism Looms, A Free Press Must Stand Up |url=https://www.mississippifreepress.org/democracy-as-fascism-looms-the-free-press-must-stand-and-report-in-the-breach/ |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=Mississippi Free Press |language=en-US}} Snyder, too, condemned the decision.{{Cite web |last=Snyder |first=Timothy |date=2024-10-26 |title=Obeying in advance |url=https://snyder.substack.com/p/obeying-in-advance |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=Thinking about...}}

In January 2025, editorial cartoonist Ann Telnaes resigned from the Post after it refused to run a satirical cartoon critical of the relationship between American billionaires and President Donald Trump, sparking conversations about the paper's ownership under Bezos; Telnaes called the decision "dangerous for a free press".{{Cite web |last=Telnaes |first=Ann |date=2025-01-03 |title=Why I'm quitting the Washington Post |url=https://anntelnaes.substack.com/p/why-im-quitting-the-washington-post |access-date=2025-01-03 |website=Substack}}{{Cite news |last=Patton |first=Tess |date=2025-01-03 |title=Washington Post Cartoonist Ann Telnaes Quits After Bezos-Owned Paper Kills Trump Satire Piece |url=https://www.thewrap.com/washington-post-cartoonist-quits-after-bezos-trump-satire-killed/ |access-date=2025-01-03 |work=The Wrap}} In February 2025, Bezos announced that the opinion section of the Post will give voice only to opinions that support "personal liberties" and "free markets", and that divergent opinions will not be published by the Post.NBC News, 26 Feb. 2025, [https://www.nbcnews.com/media/jeff-bezos-washington-post-op-ed-david-shipley-rcna193817 "Jeff Bezos Overhauls Washington Post Opinion Section, Says It will Focus on 'Personal Liberties and Free Markets,' Opinion Editor David Shipley decided to "step away" after Bezos offered him the chance to continue in his role but under this new editorial focus] {{Cite news |last=Mullin |first=Benjamin |date=2025-02-26 |title=Bezos' Directive for Washington Post Opinion Pages Leads to Editor David Shipley's Exit |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/26/business/media/washington-post-bezos-shipley.html |access-date=2025-02-26 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}} David Shipley, The Post{{'}}s opinion editor, resigned after trying to persuade Bezos to reconsider the new direction. Within two days of the announcement, it was reported that over 75,000 digital subscribers had canceled their subscriptions.{{cite news|url = https://www.npr.org/2025/02/28/nx-s1-5312819/washington-post-bezos-subscriptions-cancellations|title = Bezos' changes at 'Washington Post' lead to mass subscription cancellations — again|last = Folkenfirk|first = David|date = February 28, 2025|accessdate = February 28, 2025|work = NPR}}

Due to his considerable influence on industry, politics, and media, Bezos has been described as an oligarch.{{Cite web |last=Foer |first=Franklin |date=2024-11-02 |title=The Unique Danger of a Trumpist Oligarchy |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/11/trumpist-oligarchy-big-tech-takeover-musk-bezos/680503/ |access-date=2024-11-14 |website=The Atlantic |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Murphy |first=Tim |title=The rise of the American oligarchy |url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2024/01/american-oligarchy-introduction-essay-russia-ukraine-capitalism/ |access-date=2024-11-14 |website=Mother Jones |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Opinion {{!}} Democracy Dies... in the Pockets of the American Oligarchy {{!}} Common Dreams |url=https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/democracy-oligarch-us-election |access-date=2024-11-14 |website=www.commondreams.org |language=en}}

{{See also|Family of Jeff Bezos}}

File:Jeff Bezos talking.jpg

In 1992, while working for D. E. Shaw in Manhattan, Bezos met novelist MacKenzie Tuttle, who was a research associate at the firm; the couple married a year later.{{cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/1999/03/bezos-3|title=The Inner Bezos|last=Bayers|first=Chip|magazine=Wired|access-date=March 7, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180320200110/https://www.wired.com/1999/03/bezos-3/|archive-date=March 20, 2018}}{{cite web|url=http://www.siliconbeat.com/2013/11/05/quoted-she-said-he-said-mackenzie-bezos-vs-author-of-book-on-amazon|title=Quoted: She Said, He Said – MacKenzie Bezos Vs. Author of Book on Amazon|website=SiliconBeat|publisher=The Mercury News|author=Levi Sumagaysay|date=November 5, 2013|quote=I have firsthand knowledge of many of the events. I worked for Jeff (Bezos) at D. E. Shaw|access-date=January 9, 2018|archive-date=April 2, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180402054946/http://www.siliconbeat.com/2013/11/05/quoted-she-said-he-said-mackenzie-bezos-vs-author-of-book-on-amazon/|url-status=live}} In 1994, they moved across the country to Seattle, Washington, where Bezos founded Amazon.{{cite news|last=Bayers|first=Chip|url=https://www.wired.com/wired/archive/7.03/bezos_pr.html|title=The Inner Bezos|magazine=Wired|volume=7|issue=3|access-date=August 23, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130831214002/http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/7.03/bezos_pr.html|archive-date=August 31, 2013}} Bezos and his now ex-wife MacKenzie are the parents of four children: three sons, and a daughter adopted from China.{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/05/us/jeff-bezos-fast-facts|title=Jeff Bezos Fast Facts|publisher=CNN|date=March 24, 2016|access-date=August 3, 2014|archive-date=August 10, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140810152735/http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/05/us/jeff-bezos-fast-facts/|url-status=live}}

In March 2003, Bezos was a passenger in a helicopter that crashed in West Texas while surveying land to buy for Blue Origin; the other three occupants in the helicopter were pilot Charles "Cheater" Bella, Amazon lawyer Elizabeth Korrell, and local rancher Ty Holland.{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB104742483556702500|title=Amazon Chief Survives Helicopter Crash in Texas|author=Nick Wingfield|access-date=March 7, 2018|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|archive-date=March 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308103905/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB104742483556702500|url-status=live}}{{Cite book |last=Davenport |first=Christian |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1003305591 |title=The Space Barons : Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the Quest to Colonize the Cosmos |publisher=PublicAffairs |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-61039-829-9 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=1–26 |language=English |oclc=1003305591 |author-link=Christian Davenport}} All survived; Bezos sustained only minor injuries and was discharged from a local hospital the same day.

Bezos portrayed a Starfleet official in the 2016 movie Star Trek Beyond, and joined the cast and crew at a San Diego Comic-Con screening.{{cite web |date=July 21, 2016 |title=Amazon founder Jeff Bezos reveals Star Trek Beyond alien cameo |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-36857001 |publisher=BBC |access-date=February 22, 2017|archive-date=February 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223141849/http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-36857001 |url-status=live }} He had lobbied Paramount for the role apropos of Alexa and his personal/professional interest in speech recognition. His one line consisted of a response to an alien in distress: "Speak Normally." In his initial discussion of the project which became Alexa with his technical advisor Greg Hart in 2011, Bezos told him that the goal was to create "the Star Trek computer."Vlahos, James (2019). Talk to Me: How Voice Computing Will Transform the Way We Live, Work and Think, p. 40, Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. {{ISBN|978-1328799302}}. Bezos's family corporation Zefram LLC is named after Zefram Cochrane, a character from Star Trek.{{Cite news|last1=Timberg|first1=Craig|last2=Whoriskey|first2=Peter|last3=Davenport|first3=Christian|last4=Dwoskin|first4=Elizabeth|title=Jeff Bezos, long known for guarding his privacy, faces his most public and personal crisis|language=en-US|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/jeff-bezos-long-known-for-guarding-his-privacy-faces-his-most-public-and-personal-crisis/2019/02/08/8e130a82-2bd4-11e9-97b3-ae59fbae7960_story.html|access-date=October 21, 2020|issn=0190-8286|archive-date=October 24, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024054738/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/jeff-bezos-long-known-for-guarding-his-privacy-faces-his-most-public-and-personal-crisis/2019/02/08/8e130a82-2bd4-11e9-97b3-ae59fbae7960_story.html|url-status=live}}

In January 2019, Bezos and his wife MacKenzie released a joint statement which revealed that they would be getting divorced after 25 years together.{{Citation |title=Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and wife MacKenzie to divorce after 25 years of marriage |first=Mike |last=Snider |newspaper=USA Today |date=January 9, 2019 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2019/01/09/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-wife-mackenzie-divorce-after-25-years/2523544002/ |access-date=January 9, 2019 |archive-date=January 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190109190914/https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2019/01/09/amazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-wife-mackenzie-divorce-after-25-years/2523544002/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news|date=July 21, 2016|title=Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos are getting divorced after 25 years of marriage|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/09/tech/jeff-bezos-wife-divorce/index.html|publisher=CNN|access-date=January 9, 2019|archive-date=January 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190109154741/https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/09/tech/jeff-bezos-wife-divorce/index.html|url-status=live}} Subsequently, National Enquirer revealed that Bezos had an affair with media personality Lauren Sánchez; the affair with Sánchez had lasted for months.{{Cite web |last=Dean |first=Sam |date=February 8, 2019 |title=What Jeff Bezos' intimate-message breach teaches us about digital security |url=https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-jeff-bezos-photos-security-20190208-story.html |access-date=November 29, 2022 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US |archive-date=November 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129201143/https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-jeff-bezos-photos-security-20190208-story.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Hartmans |first=Avery |title=Jeff Bezos' girlfriend Lauren Sanchez greeted him when he returned from his spaceflight. Here's everything that's happened since their relationship began, including a tabloid scandal and possibly even a hack by foreign operatives. |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-relationship-timeline-photos-2020-1 |access-date=November 29, 2022 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US |archive-date=January 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200109223010/https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-relationship-timeline-photos-2020-1 |url-status=live }} Later, Bezos published an online essay on February 7, 2019, in which he accused American Media, Inc. owner David Pecker of "extortion and blackmail" for threatening to publish intimate photos of Bezos and current girlfriend Lauren Sánchez{{Cite news |last1=Stone |first1=Brad |date=February 2, 2021 |title=Jeff Bezos Walks Through a One-Way Door, Opening a New Age for Amazon |work=Bloomberg Media |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-03/jeff-bezos-steps-down-heralding-new-era-for-amazon |url-status=live |access-date=February 4, 2021 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210203060543/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-03/jeff-bezos-steps-down-heralding-new-era-for-amazon |archive-date=February 3, 2021}} if he did not stop his investigation into how his text messages and other photos had been leaked to the National Enquirer.{{cite news |last=Weise |first=Karen |date=February 7, 2019 |title=Jeff Bezos Accuses National Enquirer of 'Extortion and Blackmail' |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/07/technology/jeff-bezos-national-enquirer-blackmail.html |url-status=live |access-date=February 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207235007/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/07/technology/jeff-bezos-national-enquirer-blackmail.html |archive-date=February 7, 2019}}{{cite web |last=Bezos |first=Jeff |date=February 7, 2019 |title=No thank you, Mr. Pecker |url=https://medium.com/@jeffreypbezos/no-thank-you-mr-pecker-146e3922310f |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207230040/https://medium.com/@jeffreypbezos/no-thank-you-mr-pecker-146e3922310f |archive-date=February 7, 2019 |access-date=February 7, 2019 |publisher=Medium.com}} Media reports have accused Sánchez's brother Michael of being the source for the photos obtained by National Enquirer; however, Bezos has speculated that it may have been the Saudi Arabian government.{{Cite web |last=Sapra |first=Paige Leskin, Bani |title=Jeff Bezos' nudes were reportedly leaked when his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez sent them to her brother, in a new twist to the dramatic saga — here's everything we know so far |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-national-enquirer-investigation-timeline-2019-2 |access-date=November 29, 2022 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US |archive-date=November 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129201143/https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-national-enquirer-investigation-timeline-2019-2 |url-status=live }}

On April 4, 2019, the divorce was finalized, with Bezos keeping 75% of the couple's Amazon stock and MacKenzie getting the remaining 25% ($35.6 billion). However, Bezos would keep all of the couple's voting rights.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/04/mackenzie-bezos-to-keep-25-percent-of-couples-amazon-stock-after-finalizing-divorce.html|title=Jeff Bezos to keep 75 percent of couple's Amazon stock after finalizing divorce|access-date=March 4, 2019|archive-date=April 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190404173118/https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/04/mackenzie-bezos-to-keep-25-percent-of-couples-amazon-stock-after-finalizing-divorce.html|url-status=live}} On May 22, 2023, Sánchez and Bezos became engaged.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/22/entertainment/jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-engaged/index.html|title=Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez are engaged|date=May 22, 2023|website=CNN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230523052846/https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/22/entertainment/jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-engaged/index.html|archive-date=May 23, 2023|url-status=live|access-date=May 22, 2023|first1=Chloe|last1=Melas|first2=Alli|last2=Rosenbloom}}

Bezos is the Honorary Chair of the Explorers Club.{{Cite news |title=Club Officials {{!}} The Explorers Club |language=en-US |work=The Explorers Club |url=https://www.explorers.org/about/club-officials/ |access-date=March 26, 2023 |archive-date=April 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402045100/https://www.explorers.org/about/club-officials/ |url-status=live }}

File:The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi presenting the USIBC Global Leadership Award to Mr. Jeff Bezos, in Washington DC, USA on June 07, 2016.jpg presenting the USIBC Global Leadership Award to Bezos, in Washington, D.C. on June 7, 2016]]

File:Prime Minister Boris Johnson UNGA visit (51786182369).jpg meets with Bezos during the United Nations General Assembly, in New York City on September 20, 2021.]]

According to public campaign finance records, Bezos supported the electoral campaigns of Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, two Democratic U.S. senators from Washington. He has also supported Democrats U.S. representative John Conyers, as well as Patrick Leahy and Republican Spencer Abraham, U.S. senators serving on committees dealing with Internet-related issues.{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2013/08/07/the-politics-of-jeff-bezos |title=The politics of Jeff Bezos |last=Sullivan |first=Sean |date=August 7, 2013 |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286 |access-date=March 7, 2018 |archive-date=March 7, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180307152855/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2013/08/07/the-politics-of-jeff-bezos/ |url-status=live }} Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Bezos have supported the legalization of same-sex marriage, and in 2012 contributed $2.5 million to Washington United for Marriage, a group supporting a yes vote on Washington Referendum 74, which affirmed a same-sex marriage law enacted in the state.{{cite web |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-gaymarriage-bezos-idUSBRE86R01320120728 |title=Amazon's Jeff Bezos, wife, make $2.5 million donation for gay marriage |last=Porterfield |first=Elaine |date=July 28, 2012 |access-date=August 23, 2013 |work=Reuters |archive-date=August 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130815022336/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/28/us-usa-gaymarriage-bezos-idUSBRE86R01320120728 |url-status=live }} Bezos donated $100,000 towards a movement against a Washington state income tax in 2010 for "top earners". In 2012, he donated to Amazon's political action committee (PAC), which has given $56,000 and $74,500 to Democrats and Republicans, respectively.{{cite web |url=http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/pacgot.php?cmte=C00360354&cycle=2012 |title=Amazon.com Contributions to Federal Candidates, 2012 cycles |publisher=OpenSecrets |archive-date=March 8, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180308041618/http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/pacgot.php?cmte=C00360354&cycle=2012 |url-status=live}}

In 2014, Amazon won a bid for a cloud computing contract with the CIA valued at $600 million.{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/norman-solomon/why-amazons-collaboration_b_4824854.html|title=Why Amazon's collaboration with the CIA is so ominous – and vulnerable|first=Norman|last=Solomon|newspaper=HuffPost|date=February 20, 2014|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=August 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180807022453/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/norman-solomon/why-amazons-collaboration_b_4824854.html|url-status=live}} A 2018, $10 billion contract known as the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI) project, this time with the Pentagon, was allegedly written up in a way that favors Amazon.{{cite web|url=https://federalnewsradio.com/contractsawards/2018/08/dods-10b-cloud-contract-comes-under-protest-11-days-after-final-rfp/|title=DoD's $10B cloud contract comes under protest 11 days after final RFP|first=Jason|last=Miller|publisher=Federal News Radio|date=August 7, 2018|access-date=October 21, 2018|archive-date=September 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923163309/https://federalnewsradio.com/contractsawards/2018/08/dods-10b-cloud-contract-comes-under-protest-11-days-after-final-rfp/|url-status=live}} Controversy over this was raised when General James Mattis accepted a headquarters tour invitation from Bezos and co-ordinated the deal through Sally Donnelly, a lobbyist who previously worked for Amazon.{{cite news|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/08/has-bezos-become-more-powerful-in-dc-than-trump|title="Everybody immediately knew that it was for Amazon": Has Bezos become more powerful in DC than Trump?|first=May|last=Jeong|magazine=Vanity Fair|date=August 13, 2018|access-date=September 14, 2018|archive-date=August 21, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180821034524/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/08/has-bezos-become-more-powerful-in-dc-than-trump|url-status=live}} In November 2019, when the contract was awarded to Microsoft instead, Amazon filed a lawsuit with allegations that the bidding process was biased.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/oct/26/microsoft-wins-pentagons-10bn-cloud-computing-contract|title=Microsoft wins Pentagon's $10bn cloud computing contract|newspaper=The Guardian|date=October 26, 2019|access-date=November 21, 2019|archive-date=November 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118022426/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/oct/26/microsoft-wins-pentagons-10bn-cloud-computing-contract|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/news/2019/11/14/amazon-sues-pentagon-microsoft-contract-071001|title=Amazon suing Pentagon over $10B cloud contract, alleging 'bias'|first1=Jacqueline|last1=Feldscher|first2=Steven|last2=Overly|work=Politico|date=November 14, 2019|access-date=November 21, 2019|archive-date=November 15, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191115043517/https://www.politico.com/news/2019/11/14/amazon-sues-pentagon-microsoft-contract-071001|url-status=live}} On July 6, 2021, the Pentagon cancelled the JEDI contract with Microsoft, citing that "due to evolving requirements, increased cloud conversancy, and industry advances, the JEDI Cloud contract no longer meets its needs."{{Cite web |last1=Macias |first1=Amanda |last2=Feiner |first2=Lauren |date=July 6, 2021 |title=Pentagon cancels $10 billion JEDI cloud contract that Amazon and Microsoft were fighting over |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/06/pentagon-cancels-10-billion-jedi-cloud-contract.html |access-date=July 6, 2021 |publisher=CNBC |language=en |archive-date=July 6, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210706163909/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/06/pentagon-cancels-10-billion-jedi-cloud-contract.html |url-status=live }} Despite Bezos's support for an open borders policy towards immigrants, Amazon has actively marketed facial recognition software to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).{{cite news|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/amazon-pushes-ice-to-buy-its-face-recognition-surveillance-tech|title=Amazon Pushes ICE to Buy Its Face Recognition Surveillance Tech|first=Jake|last=Laperruque|website=The Daily Beast|date=October 23, 2018|access-date=October 23, 2018|archive-date=October 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181023141902/https://www.thedailybeast.com/amazon-pushes-ice-to-buy-its-face-recognition-surveillance-tech|url-status=live}}

In 2019, a PAC linked to Bezos spent over $1 million in an unsuccessful attempt to defeat the reelection bid of Seattle city council member and activist Kshama Sawant.{{cite web|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/amazons-growing-spending-on-seattle-politics-includes-a-spate-of-donations-from-jeff-bezos-s-team/|title=Amazon's growing spending on Seattle politics includes a spate of donations from Jeff Bezos' 'S Team'|first1=Jim|last1=Brunner|first2=Benjamin|last2=Romano|work=The Seattle Times|date=October 20, 2019|access-date=November 21, 2019|archive-date=December 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211185519/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/amazons-growing-spending-on-seattle-politics-includes-a-spate-of-donations-from-jeff-bezos-s-team/|url-status=live}} On November 22, 2021, Jeff Bezos donated $100 million to the Obama Foundation to "help expand the scope of programming that reaches emerging leaders", and requested the Obama Presidential Center's plaza to be named after John Lewis.{{Cite web|title=Jeff Bezos donates $100M to the Obama Foundation in honor of Congressman John Lewis|url=https://www.obama.org/updates/bezos-donation-2021/|access-date=November 23, 2021|website=Obama Foundation|language=en|archive-date=November 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211123010856/https://www.obama.org/updates/bezos-donation-2021/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|title=Jeff Bezos donates to Obama Foundation in honor of John Lewis|date=November 22, 2021|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/jeff-bezos-donates-obama-foundation-honor-john-lewis-n1284413|access-date=November 23, 2021|publisher=NBC News|language=en|archive-date=November 23, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211123012051/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/jeff-bezos-donates-obama-foundation-honor-john-lewis-n1284413|url-status=live}}

After the 2016 presidential election, Bezos was invited to join Donald Trump's Defense Innovation Advisory Board, an advisory council to improve the technology used by the Defense Department.{{cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/2016/08/02/investing/donald-trump-hillary-clinton-billionaires-warren-buffett/index.html|title=The Hillary Clinton billionaires club|publisher=CNN|date=August 2, 2016|last=La Monica|first=Paul R.|access-date=August 3, 2020|archive-date=August 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806193619/https://money.cnn.com/2016/08/02/investing/donald-trump-hillary-clinton-billionaires-warren-buffett/index.html|url-status=live}} Trump has repeatedly criticized Bezos via Twitter, accused Bezos of avoiding corporate taxes, gaining undue political influence, and undermining his presidency by spreading "fake news".{{cite web |url=http://fortune.com/2017/06/28/donald-trump-twitter-jeff-bezos|title=How to Understand Donald Trump's #AmazonWashingtonPost Tweet in 3 Easy Steps|last=Abramson|first=Alana|website=Fortune|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310010150/http://fortune.com/2017/06/28/donald-trump-twitter-jeff-bezos/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/slammed-by-trump-amazons-jeff-bezos-chooses-the-silent-treatment-1523282400|title=Slammed by Trump, Amazon's Jeff Bezos Chooses Silence|last1=Stevens|first1=Laura|date=April 9, 2018|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=April 9, 2018|last2=Nicholas|first2=Peter|archive-date=April 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180409145543/https://www.wsj.com/articles/slammed-by-trump-amazons-jeff-bezos-chooses-the-silent-treatment-1523282400|url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/02/why-jeff-bezos-is-pouring-amazon-cash-into-trumps-swamp|title=Why Jeff Bezos Is Dumping Cash into Trump's Swamp|last=Kosoff|first=Maya|website=The Hive|date=February 14, 2018|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=August 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190821184147/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/02/why-jeff-bezos-is-pouring-amazon-cash-into-trumps-swamp|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/12/07/donald-trump-called-out-jeff-bezos-on-twitter-then-bezos-called-his-bluff|title=Donald Trump called out Jeff Bezos on Twitter. Then Bezos called his bluff.|last=Cillizza|first=Chris|date=December 7, 2015|newspaper=The Washington Post|issn=0190-8286|access-date=March 9, 2018|archive-date=March 9, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180309182728/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/12/07/donald-trump-called-out-jeff-bezos-on-twitter-then-bezos-called-his-bluff/|url-status=live}} Nevertheless, Bezos congratulated Trump on his second election victory, posting on X, “Big congratulations to our 45th and now 47th President on an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory. No nation has bigger opportunities. Wishing Donald Trump all success in leading and uniting the America we all love”.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/06/media/jeff-bezos-congratulates-trump-victory-amazon-post/index.html|title=Jeff Bezos congratulates Trump for 'extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory'|last=Reilly|first=Liam|website=CNN|date=November 6, 2024|access-date=November 27, 2024}}

Bezos has been a resident of Indian Creek, Florida since 2023, which is near Trump's Mar-a-Lago.{{Cite web|url=https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/luxury-homes/most-expensive-miami-home-sales-c85bafe1|title=Billionaire Buyers Like Jeff Bezos Have Supercharged Miami’s High-End Home Market|first1=Katherine|last1=Clarke|website=The Wall Street Journal|quote=The Amazon founder’s $68 million Indian Creek purchase is among the priciest deals to close in the South Florida city in recent years|date=August 21, 2023|access-date=2025-03-01}}

As reported by Axios in February 2025, Bezos held a private phone conversation in July 2024 with then-candidate Donald Trump, planting the seeds of a "Bezos-Trump alliance" months before Bezos blocked the Washington Post{{'}}s editorial board from endorsing Kamala Harris in the election.{{cite web | last=Isenstadt | first=Alex | title=The inside story of how the Bezos-Trump alliance began | website=Axios | date=2025-02-27 | url=https://www.axios.com/2025/02/27/jeff-bezos-trump-tech-alliance | access-date=2025-03-01}} After Trump's November victory, Bezos dined with Elon Musk and Trump at Mar-a-Lago; Amazon subsequently donated $1 million to Trump's inauguration, at which Bezos was in attendance. Bezos and Trump were reported to have met for dinner again in February 2025, on the same night that Bezos announced changes to the Washington Post's opinion policies to promote "free markets and personal liberties" and suppress divergent opinions.{{cite web | last=Amos | first=Jaden | title=Trump says he had dinner with Bezos week of Washington Post changes | website=Axios | date=2025-02-28 | url=https://www.axios.com/2025/02/28/trump-jeff-bezos-dinner-spectator-interview | access-date=2025-03-01}} Axios characterized it as "another sign of Trump and Bezos' growing closeness."

According to the Financial Times, Bezos had a contentious relationship with Trump during Trump's first term, but worked to have a positive relationship with Trump in 2024 and during Trump's second term. Bezos reportedly supported Trump to further his business interests, and supports many of Trump's policies. The Financial Times also noted that Bezos had made other changes in his life, including stepping down as CEO of Amazon in 2021, focusing on Blue Origin, and being engaged to Lauren Sánchez, which may have changed his political views.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ft.com/content/00e81e1a-a38f-4d45-89e8-0e8c162572b8|title=How Jeff Bezos made peace with Donald Trump|quote=In the past year, the Amazon founder has executed a sharp public reversal in his relationship with the president that has surprised even longtime associates|website=The Financial Times|date=March 19, 2025|first1=Anna|last1=Nicolaou|first2=Stephen|last2=Morris|first3=Rafe|last3=Uddin|first4=Alex|last4=Rogers|access-date=March 19, 2025}}

{{Main|Jeff Bezos phone hacking incident}}

In March 2018, Bezos met in Seattle with Mohammad bin Salman, the crown prince and de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, to discuss investment opportunities for Saudi Vision 2030.{{cite news|url=http://www.arabnews.com/node/1276676/saudi-arabia|title=Saudi crown prince meets Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in Seattle|newspaper=Arab News|date=March 31, 2018|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180523171558/http://www.arabnews.com/node/1276676/saudi-arabia|archive-date=May 23, 2018}} In March 2019, Bezos's security consultant accused the Saudi government of hacking Bezos's phone. According to BBC, Bezos's top security staffer, Gavin de Becker,{{cite news |last1=Chozick |first1=Amy |title=He's Come Undone |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/02/business/jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-amazon-hollywood.html |work=The New York Times |date=March 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224054211/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/02/business/jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-amazon-hollywood.html |archive-date=February 24, 2021 |page=1(L) | id={{Gale|A576639749}}}} "linked the hack to the Washington Post{{'}}s coverage of the murder of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul". Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and dissident was employed as a writer at the Washington Post, owned by Bezos. Khashoggi was killed in late 2018 in Turkey's Saudi consulate for his critical stance and journalism against the Saudi government and its leader.{{cite news|title=Saudi Arabia 'hacked Amazon boss's phone', says investigator|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47763179|work=BBC News|date=March 31, 2019|access-date=May 9, 2019|archive-date=April 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411133518/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47763179|url-status=live}} In January 2020, The Guardian reported that the hack was initiated before the murder but after Khashoggi wrote critically about the crown prince in the Washington Post. Forensic analysis of Bezos's mobile phone conducted by advisory firm FTI Consulting, concluded it "highly probable" that the hack was achieved using a malicious file hidden in a video sent in a WhatsApp message to Bezos from the personal account of the crown prince on May 1, 2018.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/jan/21/amazon-boss-jeff-bezoss-phone-hacked-by-saudi-crown-prince|title=Jeff Bezos hack: Amazon boss's phone 'hacked by Saudi crown prince'|first=Stephanie|last=Kirchgaessner|newspaper=The Guardian|date=January 22, 2020|access-date=January 22, 2020|archive-date=February 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200229191904/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/jan/21/amazon-boss-jeff-bezoss-phone-hacked-by-saudi-crown-prince|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/22/technology/jeff-bezos-hack-iphone.html|title=How Jeff Bezos' iPhone X Was Hacked|access-date=January 22, 2020|website=The New York Times|date=January 22, 2020|archive-date=January 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200123001012/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/22/technology/jeff-bezos-hack-iphone.html|url-status=live|last1=Frenkel|first1=Sheera}} Saudi Arabia has denied the claim.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51171400 |title=Jeff Bezos hack: Saudi Arabia calls claim 'absurd' |date=January 22, 2020 |work=BBC News|access-date=January 22, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200122090908/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51171400|archive-date=January 22, 2020}}

File:Recovered F-1 Engine parts .jpg parts from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean in 2015, eventually donating them to the Seattle Museum of Flight. They are from Apollo 16 (above) and Apollo 12 (below).]]

Bezos donated to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center several times between 2009 and 2017.{{cite web|url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/health/hutch-receives-35-million-donation-largest-ever-from-bezos-family/|title=Fred Hutch receives $35 million donation, largest ever, from Bezos family|date=March 30, 2017|website=The Seattle Times|access-date=April 2, 2019|archive-date=April 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402165908/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/health/hutch-receives-35-million-donation-largest-ever-from-bezos-family/|url-status=live}} In 2013, he pledged $500,000 to Worldreader, a non-profit founded by a former Amazon employee.{{cite web|url=http://www.geekwire.com/2014/jeff-bezos-donates-20-million-fred-hutchinson-cancer-research-center|title=Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and family donate $20M to Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center|last=Soper|first=Taylor|website=GeekWire|date=April 7, 2014|access-date=December 31, 2017|archive-date=January 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102072819/https://www.geekwire.com/2014/jeff-bezos-donates-20-million-fred-hutchinson-cancer-research-center/ |url-status=live }} In September 2018, Business Insider reported that Bezos was the only one of the top five billionaires in the world who had not signed the Giving Pledge, an initiative created by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett that encourages wealthy people to give away a majority of their wealth.{{cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-richest-person-modern-history-spends-on-charity-2018-7|title=Jeff Bezos is the richest man in modern history – here's how he spends on philanthropy|last=Kotecki|first=Peter|magazine=Business Insider|access-date=July 1, 2019|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190508153534/https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-richest-person-modern-history-spends-on-charity-2018-7|archive-date=May 8, 2019}} That same month, Janet Camarena, director of transparency initiatives at Foundation Center, was quoted by CNBC as having questions about Bezos's new Day 1 Fund, including the fund's structure and how exactly it will be funded.{{cite news|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/14/jeff-bezoss-new-2-billion-philanthropic-fund-faces-many-unanswered-questions.html|title=Unanswered questions about Jeff Bezos' new $2 billion philanthropic fund|publisher=CNBC|date=September 16, 2018|last=Kim|first=Eugene|access-date=July 1, 2019|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190429065745/https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/14/jeff-bezoss-new-2-billion-philanthropic-fund-faces-many-unanswered-questions.html|archive-date=April 29, 2019}}

In May 2017, Bezos gave $1 million to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, which provides pro bono legal services for American journalists.{{cite news|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/4038657/jeff-bezos-just-gave-1-million-to-the-reporters-committee-for-freedom-of-the-press|title=Jeff Bezos just gave $1 million to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press|last=Grothaus|first=Michael|date=May 24, 2017|magazine=Fast Company|access-date=March 8, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180309120254/https://www.fastcompany.com/4038657/jeff-bezos-just-gave-1-million-to-the-reporters-committee-for-freedom-of-the-press|archive-date=March 9, 2018}} On June 15, 2017, he posted a message on Twitter asking for ideas for philanthropy: "I'm thinking about a philanthropy strategy that is the opposite of how I mostly spend my time—working on the long term". At the time of the post, Bezos's lifetime spending on charitable causes was estimated to be $100 million. Multiple opinion columnists responded by asking Bezos to pay higher wages to Amazon warehouse workers.{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jeff-bezos-workers_us_59a7220fe4b07e81d354e6e3|first=Frederick|last=Kunkle|title=Jeff Bezos wants to give more money to charity. He should pay his workers first.|newspaper=HuffPost|date=September 1, 2017|access-date=September 19, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180920062447/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jeff-bezos-workers_us_59a7220fe4b07e81d354e6e3|archive-date=September 20, 2018}}{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/sep/14/jeff-bezos-low-income-people-pay-amazon-workers-better|title=If Jeff Bezos wants to help low-income people why not just pay them better?|newspaper=The Guardian|date=September 14, 2018|last=Hyde|first=Marina|access-date=December 12, 2019|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191212144909/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/sep/14/jeff-bezos-low-income-people-pay-amazon-workers-better|archive-date=December 12, 2019}} A year later in June, he tweeted that he would announce two philanthropic foci by the end of summer 2018.{{cite news|url=http://observer.com/2018/06/what-has-jeff-bezos-chosen-to-spend-his-140b-on-we-have-4-guesses|title=What Has Jeff Bezos Chosen to Spend His $140B On? We Have 4 Guesses|newspaper=The Observer|date=June 6, 2018|last=Cao|first=Sissi|access-date=June 6, 2018 |archive-date=June 16, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180616082134/http://observer.com/2018/06/what-has-jeff-bezos-chosen-to-spend-his-140b-on-we-have-4-guesses |url-status=live}} Bezos announced in September 2018 that he would commit approximately $2 billion to a fund to deal with American homelessness and establish a network of non-profit preschools for low income communities.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/sep/13/amazon-jeff-bezos-philanthropy-day-one-fund|title=Jeff Bezos to fund schools where 'child will be the customer' with new charity|last=Levin|first=Sam|date=September 13, 2018|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=September 13, 2018|archive-date=September 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913200840/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/sep/13/amazon-jeff-bezos-philanthropy-day-one-fund|url-status=live}} As part of this announcement, he committed to establishing the "Day 1 Families Fund" to finance "night shelters and day care centers for homeless families" and the "Day 1 Academies Fund" for early childhood education.{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/jeff-bezos-to-create-2-billion-fund-for-homeless-preschools-1536856739|title=Jeff Bezos to Create $2 Billion Fund for Homeless, Preschools|last=Stevens|first=Laura|date=September 13, 2018|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=September 13, 2018|archive-date=September 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913165532/https://www.wsj.com/articles/jeff-bezos-to-create-2-billion-fund-for-homeless-preschools-1536856739|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2018/09/13/jeff-bezos-amazon-philanthropy-giving-billion-dollar-fund/|title=Jeff Bezos Unveils Multibillion-Dollar Plans For Charitable Giving|last=Au-Yeung|first=Angel|date=September 13, 2018|magazine=Forbes|access-date=September 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913192543/https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2018/09/13/jeff-bezos-amazon-philanthropy-giving-billion-dollar-fund/|archive-date=September 13, 2018}}

In January 2018, Bezos made a $33 million donation to TheDream.US, a college scholarship fund for undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as minors.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2018/01/12/jeff-bezos-donates-33-million-to-scholarship-fund-for-dreamers|title=Jeff Bezos donates $33 million to scholarship fund for 'dreamers'|last1=O'Keefe|first1=Ed|last2=Anderson|first2=Nick|date=January 12, 2018|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=January 12, 2018|archive-date=January 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180112171541/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2018/01/12/jeff-bezos-donates-33-million-to-scholarship-fund-for-dreamers/|url-status=live}}{{cite web | title=Bezos Pledges $33 Million for Scholarships for DREAMers | website=Philanthropy News Digest (PND) | date=2024-01-16 | url=https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/news/bezos-pledges-33-million-for-scholarships-for-dreamers | access-date=2024-02-19}} In June 2018, Bezos donated to Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a private philanthropic fund founded by Bill Gates aimed at promoting emissions-free energy.{{cite news|url=https://www.geekwire.com/2018/backed-bill-gates-jeff-bezos-breakthrough-energy-ventures-places-first-bets-power-storage|title=Backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, Breakthrough Energy Ventures places first bets on power storage|last=Boyle|first=Alan|date=June 18, 2018|work=GeekWire|access-date=June 18, 2018|quote=We are committed to doing our part and filling this capital need by coming together in a new coalition. We will form a network of private capital committed to building a structure that will allow informed decisions to help accelerate the change to the advanced energy future our planet needs. Success requires a partnership of increased government research, with a transparent and workable structure to objectively evaluate those projects, and committed private-sector investors willing to support the innovative ideas that come out of the public research pipeline.|archive-date=June 27, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180627091108/https://www.geekwire.com/2018/backed-bill-gates-jeff-bezos-breakthrough-energy-ventures-places-first-bets-power-storage/|url-status=live}} In September 2018, Bezos donated $10 million to With Honor, a nonpartisan organization that works to increase the number of veterans in political office.{{Cite web|url=https://money.cnn.com/2018/09/05/technology/jeff-bezos-donation-with-honor/index.html|title=Jeff Bezos donates $10 million to organization that helps veterans run for office|last=Goldman|first=David|date=September 5, 2018|website=CNNMoney|access-date=December 17, 2018|archive-date=December 18, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181218043103/https://money.cnn.com/2018/09/05/technology/jeff-bezos-donation-with-honor/index.html|url-status=live}}

In February 2020, Bezos pledged $10 billion to combat climate change through the Bezos Earth Fund.{{cite web|url=https://www.instagram.com/p/B8rWKFnnQ5c/|title=Instagram a new Bezos Earth Fund|date=February 17, 2020|via=Instagram|access-date=February 17, 2020|quote=Today, I'm thrilled to announce I am launching the Bezos Earth Fund.|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217222952/https://www.instagram.com/p/B8rWKFnnQ5c/|archive-date=February 17, 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://news.sky.com/story/amazon-founder-bezos-commits-10bn-to-fight-climate-change-11936763|title=Amazon founder Jeff Bezos commits $10bn to fight climate change|publisher=Sky News|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217210918/https://news.sky.com/story/amazon-founder-bezos-commits-10bn-to-fight-climate-change-11936763|archive-date=February 17, 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51539321|title=Jeff Bezos: World's richest man pledges $10bn to fight climate change|work=BBC News|date=February 17, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217210919/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51539321|archive-date=February 17, 2020}} Later that year, in November, Bezos announced $791M of donations to established, well-known groups, with $100M each going to Environmental Defense Fund, Natural Resources Defense Council, The Nature Conservancy, World Resources Institute and World Wildlife Fund, and the remainder going to 11 other groups.{{Cite web|date=November 16, 2020|title=Bezos Earth Fund announces first grants totaling $791M of his $10B pledge to help planet|url=https://www.geekwire.com/2020/bezos-earth-fund-announces-first-grants-totaling-791m-10b-pledge-help-planet/|access-date=March 10, 2021|website=GeekWire|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|title=Bezos Earth Fund gives nearly $800 million to climate groups in first round of grants|url=https://phys.org/news/2020-11-bezos-earth-fund-million-climate.html|access-date=March 10, 2021|website=phys.org|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=Palmer|first=Annie|date=November 16, 2020|title=Jeff Bezos names first recipients of his $10 billion Earth Fund for combating climate change|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/16/jeff-bezos-names-first-recipients-of-his-10-billion-earth-fund.html|access-date=March 10, 2021|publisher=CNBC|language=en}} In April 2020, early in the COVID-19 pandemic, Bezos donated $100 million to food banks through Feeding America.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52209690|title=Twitter boss pledges $1bn for coronavirus relief|work=BBC News|date=April 7, 2020|access-date=April 15, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413111217/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52209690|archive-date=April 13, 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/4/2/21206205/jeff-bezos-100-million-charity-food-banks-feeding-america|title=Why Jeff Bezos's $100 million donation to food banks won't satisfy his critics|website=Vox|language=en|date=April 2, 2020|last=Schleifer|first=Theodore|access-date=April 15, 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200413021313/https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/4/2/21206205/jeff-bezos-100-million-charity-food-banks-feeding-america|archive-date=April 13, 2020}} In November 2021, Bezos pledged to donate $2 billion towards restructuring food systems and nature conservation at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference.{{cite web |title=Jeff Bezos Pledges $2B for Nature Conservation as World Leaders Address Deforestation, Emissions |date=November 2, 2021 |url=https://news.yahoo.com/jeff-bezos-pledges-2b-nature-211448103.html |access-date=November 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211213193923/https://news.yahoo.com/jeff-bezos-pledges-2b-nature-211448103.html |archive-date=December 13, 2021 |url-status=live |work=Yahoo! News |first=Jason Duaine |last=Hahn}}

In July 2021, Bezos announced the Courage and Civility Award and donated $100 million each to lawyer Van Jones and chef José Andrés.{{cite news |last1=Darcy |first1=Oliver |title=Bezos donates $100 million each to CNN contributor Van Jones and chef Jose Andres {{!}} CNN Business |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2021/07/20/media/van-jones-bezos-100-million/index.html |access-date=March 15, 2024 |work=CNN |date=July 20, 2021 |language=en}} The next year, he donated $100 million to singer Dolly Parton in recognition of her charity work focused on improving children's literacy around the world.{{cite news |title=Country star Dolly Parton gets $100m award from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos |date=November 14, 2022 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-63619512 |access-date=November 14, 2022 |publisher=BBC News}} In March 2024, he donated $50 million each to actress Eva Longoria and retired admiral Bill McRaven.{{cite news |title=Eva Longoria and Bill McRaven Receive $100 Million From Jeff Bezos |url=https://republicreporter.com/2024/03/eva-longoria-and-bill-mcraven-receive-100-million-from-jeff-bezos/ |access-date=March 15, 2024 |work=The Republic Reporter |date=March 15, 2024}}

Bezos Academy is a group of tuition-free preschools for students from low-income families, which was created by Bezos, and which operate in a manner similar to the Montessori method (but are not accredited as Montessori schools).[https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-free-preschool-bezos-academy-locations-curriculum-eligibility-2022-1 Jeff Bezos's tuition-free preschool is expanding to new locations in Texas and Florida. Here's who's eligible to attend and why Bezos says 'the child will be the customer.'], Business Insider, January 31, 2022 On November 22, 2022, Bezos awarded $123 million to organizations that are engaged in relocating homeless families to permanent housing. Day 1 Families Fund grants, the amounts of which vary in monetary terms, will be sent to 40 organizations across the country.{{Cite web|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2022/11/22/business/jeff-bezos-day-1-fund-grants|title=Jeff Bezos announces 40 grants totaling $123 million to combat homelessness|website=edition.cnn.com|date=November 22, 2022}}

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{{Notelist}}

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• {{cite book |title=Jeff Bezos: Amazon.com Architect |first=Tom |last=Robinson |year=2010 |publisher=ABDO Publishing |isbn=978-1-60453-759-8}}

{{Refbegin|30em}}

• {{cite news |last=Boyle |first=Alan |date=May 29, 2018 |title=Jeff Bezos: 'We will have to leave this planet ... and it's going to make this planet better' |url=https://www.geekwire.com/2018/jeff-bezos-isdc-space-vision |work=GeekWire |access-date=May 31, 2018 |archive-date=May 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180529170353/https://www.geekwire.com/2018/jeff-bezos-isdc-space-vision/ |url-status=live |ref=none}}
• Davenport, Christian (2018). The Space Barons: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the Quest to Colonize the Cosmos. PublicAffairs. {{ISBN|978-1610398299}}.
• {{cite news |last=Döpfner |first=Mathias S. |date=March 28, 2018 |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-interview-axel-springer-ceo-amazon-trump-blue-origin-family-regulation-washington-post-2018-4 |title=Jeff Bezos reveals what it's like to build an empire |work=Business Insider |access-date=April 29, 2018 |archive-date=April 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180430233857/http://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-interview-axel-springer-ceo-amazon-trump-blue-origin-family-regulation-washington-post-2018-4 |url-status=live |ref=none}}
• Fernholz, Tim (2018). Rocket Billionaires: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the New Space Race. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. {{ISBN|978-1328662231}}.
• Leibovich, Mark. The New Imperialists (Prentice Hall, 2002) pp 55–104.[https://archive.org/details/newimperialists00mark online]
• {{cite news |last=Wingfield |first=Nick |date=January 12, 2018 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/12/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon.html |title=Jeff Bezos, Mr. Amazon, Steps Out |work=The New York Times |access-date=April 29, 2018 |archive-date=April 22, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422111725/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/12/technology/jeff-bezos-amazon.html |url-status=live |ref=none}}
• {{cite news |last=Wofford |first=Ben |date=April 22, 2018 |title=Inside Jeff Bezos's Washington D.C. Life |url=https://www.washingtonian.com/2018/04/22/inside-jeff-bezos-dc-life |work=Washingtonian |access-date=April 29, 2018 |archive-date=April 29, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180429052713/https://www.washingtonian.com/2018/04/22/inside-jeff-bezos-dc-life/ |url-status=live |ref=none}}

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