Amazon faces employee backlash over Chris Hemsworth's role amid Washington Post layoffs: ‘It is an insult to us…’

Actor Chris Hemsworth on Thursday morning appeared on Amazon's internal organisational chart as “Chief Heartthrob” for Alexa Devices, the e-commerce giant's voice assistant, reporting to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, according to a Reuters report.

The ‘Thor’ actor was given an Amazon email address and assigned the role of bar raiser, a high-profile internal position for employees involved in hiring across the company. However, Hemsworth was demoted by late Thursday, reporting to the head of devices and services, the news portal noted.

“When I’m not starring in movies, I enjoy spending time with my family, campaigning for Ad Meter votes, snake wrangling, bear wrestling, hammer throwing and a nice cinnamon scrub,” the report quoted Hemsworth's statement on the chart.

It was a promotional stunt designed to promote Amazon’s Super Bowl ad showcasing Alexa’s AI features. In the commercial, Hemsworth imagines his own death caused by Alexa AI, including scenes where he is crushed by his garage door, drowns in his pool, and wrestles a bear unleashed on him. The voice of Alexa in the ad assures him in the end that it is a force for good.

Companies spend large sums on expensive advertisements during the annual football championship. This year, ads cost around $8 million for 30 seconds of broadcasting. Amazon's competitors in AI, Anthropic and OpenAI, are also running Super Bowl commercials this year.

Concern among employees

For Amazon employees, however, the company's latest move seemed insensitive given recent layoffs and a stock price that dropped after a disappointing fourth-quarter earnings report on Thursday. Last week, the company laid off 16,000 corporate workers, many of whom worked on Alexa, the report said.

The Washington Post, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, began widespread layoffs on Wednesday, cutting a third of its staff.

“This definitely makes up for the hollow feeling of cleaning out my peer’s desk and meeting him out front with his boxes, given he was laid off last week,” the report quoted an employee on a social media site used by Amazon staff.

“It’s less of a joke than it is an insult to the rest of us,” wrote another.

An Amazon spokesperson told the news portal that it was “a fun internal Easter egg as we head into the Big Game this weekend.” She refused to respond to employees’ concerns.

This week, Amazon announced that its new Alexa service, driven by generative AI, will be accessible to all Prime members. Alexa, which can respond to questions, assist with purchases, and manage some home automation via voice commands, has incurred financial losses since its debut more than ten years ago. To turn this around, the company is investing heavily in an AI-powered upgrade of Alexa, as showcased in this week's advertisement.