Amazon operates AWS and became the second company to reach a $1 trillion market capitalization in 2018, after Apple.
Amazon crossed the $1 trillion threshold on September 4, 2018. Its valuation reflected the scale of its online retail business, the rapid expansion of Amazon Web Services, and investor expectations for growth in areas such as advertising, logistics, and subscriptions.
Amazon Web Services, commonly called AWS, provides computing, storage, databases, and other technology services to businesses and governments. It became a particularly important source of operating income and helped investors view Amazon as more than an online retailer.
Amazon was founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 as an online bookstore. The company expanded into a broad marketplace, devices, entertainment, logistics, and cloud computing. Its $1 trillion milestone came about one month after Apple's, making Amazon the second U.S. company to reach that valuation.