This article first appeared in Boston Business Journal, a sister publication of BostInno.
Amazon.com Inc. announced today it will hire for 2,000 new tech jobs in the Seaport once it takes over 430,000 square feet of office space at the next phase of office development in Boston's Seaport Square.
The announcement confirms Boston Business Journal reporting from February and is independent from the Seattle company's ongoing search for a location for its second headquarters.
Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) already employs 3,500 people in Massachusetts between its fulfillment centers and tech offices in Cambridge and Boston. The new employees will support existing local teams focused on Alexa, Amazon Web Services, and Audible, with a special emphasis on machine learning experts who can help improve Alexa's interactions with customers.
"In just a few years, we've grown from a handful of software developers and scientists to a team of more than 1,200, inventing new capabilities and products on behalf of millions of customers around the world," Boston-based Rohit Prasad, Amazon vice president and head scientist of Amazon Alexa, said in a prepared statement. "Thank you to all our partners across the city and the state for welcoming us, helping us create these thousands of new jobs, and contributing to the already vibrant tech industry in the area."
Amazon will occupy 430,000 square feet of office space at Seaport Square's L4 block, a 17-story office that is slated to be built behind the elliptical-shaped building that's now wrapping up construction at 121 Seaport Blvd. The property is under development by Chestnut Hill-based WS Development, Seaport Square's master developer, in partnership with PSP Investments. WS Development expects to start construction later this year and finish the building by 2021.
