Amazon operates Amazon Web Services and trades under the ticker AMZN.
Amazon Web Services, usually called AWS, provides cloud infrastructure and platform services to businesses, governments, developers, and organizations. Its offerings include computing, storage, databases, networking, and machine-learning tools. AWS began offering services publicly in 2006.
Amazon was founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 as an online bookstore. It later expanded into a broad e-commerce marketplace, digital media, logistics, devices, and cloud computing. AWS became one of the company’s most important businesses and a major reason investors value Amazon beyond retail sales.
AMZN is Amazon’s stock ticker on the Nasdaq. Amazon is often compared with Microsoft and Alphabet because AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud compete in the global cloud market. The companies’ market capitalizations reflect both current performance and expectations for future growth.