Amazon operates the AWS cloud platform and is listed under the ticker AMZN.
Amazon Web Services, commonly called AWS, is Amazon’s cloud-computing division. It provides computing power, storage, databases, networking, and other services to businesses, governments, and developers. AWS launched its major public cloud services in 2006 and became a central part of Amazon’s business.
Amazon began in 1994 as an online bookstore founded by Jeff Bezos. It later expanded into a broad marketplace, logistics network, digital media company, device maker, and cloud provider. That diversification helped Amazon become one of the largest companies by market capitalization.
AMZN is the Nasdaq ticker for Amazon.com, Inc., the publicly traded parent. AWS is not a separately listed company. Another frequent misunderstanding is treating Amazon’s market capitalization as the same thing as its sales; market cap measures equity value, while sales measure revenue over a period.