Amazon owns AWS, the cloud business launched in 2006 as Amazon Web Services.
Amazon began as an online bookstore founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994, but it expanded into a broad technology and commerce company. Amazon Web Services grew from internal infrastructure capabilities into a commercial cloud platform offering computing, storage, databases, networking, and other services.
AWS is relevant to Amazon’s valuation because it became a major source of operating income and a foundation for businesses that would otherwise need to build their own data centers. Amazon’s other large activities include online retail, advertising, logistics, devices, and Prime subscriptions. AWS is not a separate publicly traded company; it is a segment of Amazon.com, Inc.