Amazon became the first online retail company to reach a $1 trillion market capitalization.
Amazon crossed the milestone in September 2018, about a month after Apple became the first U.S. company to reach the same valuation. The achievement reflected Amazon’s growth from an online bookstore into a global marketplace and technology company.
Amazon’s business includes online retail, third-party seller services, advertising, digital content, devices, and Amazon Web Services. AWS became especially important because cloud computing generated a major source of revenue and operating income separate from retail sales.
Amazon was founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 and began as an internet bookseller. Its long-term strategy emphasized expansion, logistics, selection, and customer convenience, often accepting lower short-term profits to build scale. A market capitalization of $1 trillion represented investor expectations about that broader business model rather than the value of merchandise stored in Amazon warehouses.