Amazon Shares Surge as AWS Cloud Growth Reignites Investor Confidence

Amazon shares jumped nearly 12 % in early trading following a strong quarterly showing from its cloud business, Amazon Web Services (AWS). The surge helped ease mounting investor concerns that the tech giant was lagging in the race to dominate AI infrastructure.

AWS posted 20 % year-on-year revenue growth in the third quarter, a performance the company said reflects renewed demand for AI and core infrastructure tools. The $33 billion revenue figure now more than doubles that of its closest cloud rival, signaling that Amazon’s bet on cloud and AI may be gaining traction after a period of investor skepticism.

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Amazon’s recovery wasn’t driven by cloud alone. Its retail segment saw an 11 % revenue rise, outperforming many large U.S. competitors, while its advertising arm delivered an even stronger performance — up 24 % over the prior year. The company has been expanding ad placements across devices, sponsored listings, and its own hardware to diversify revenue and improve margins.

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In recent years, AWS growth has been overshadowed by Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud’s faster climb. This quarter’s strong performance suggests Amazon is reestablishing credibility in the cloud arms race. CEO Andy Jassy noted that AWS is “growing at a pace we haven’t seen since 2022,” citing strong enterprise demand across AI and infrastructure services.

Amazon also raised its capital-spending guidance, signaling that it intends to sustain its infrastructure investment pace into next year. Investors viewed this as a sign of confidence in future growth potential, not reckless expansion.

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Even with last quarter’s success, Amazon faces challenges ahead. Its retail business must fend off macro headwinds, while AWS will need to maintain competitive differentiation amid fierce pressure on pricing and services. The heavy investment required for AI and cloud infrastructure also leaves less room for error — each dollar spent must convert into incremental value.