Amazon’s $1B Industrial Innovation Fund Expands Investment Focus

Supply Chain
Written By Rick Watson

Amazon, founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 as an online bookstore, has evolved into a global e-commerce and technology giant, offering a wide range of products and services, from books and electronics to cloud computing through Amazon Web Services (AWS), with a reputation for customer-centricity and efficient logistics.

Amazon's $1 billion Industrial Innovation Fund is diversifying its investment portfolio to include transportation, autonomous vehicles, last-mile technologies, robotics, fulfillment, and logistics. Is this a sign that Amazon believes its initial focus areas are no longer areas of startup innovation or not?

Supply Chain Dive: Amazon’s $1B investment fund eyes last-mile tech, AV startups

Rick Watson

Rick Watson founded RMW Commerce Consulting after spending 20+ years as a technology entrepreneur and operator exclusively in the eCommerce industry with companies like ChannelAdvisor, BarnesandNoble.com, Merchantry, and Pitney Bowes.

Watson’s work today is centered on supporting investors and management teams incubating and growing direct-to-consumer businesses. Most recently, in partnership with WHP Global, Rick was a critical resource in architecting the WHP+ platform, a new turnkey direct to consumer digital e-commerce platform that powers AnneKlein.com and JosephAbboud.com.

Watson also hosts a weekly podcast, Watson Weekly, where he shares an unbiased, unfiltered expert take on the retail sector’s biggest players.

In the past year alone, Rick has spoken at many in-person and virtual events as well as podcasts on topics ranging from retail/ecom to supply chain/logistics and even digital grocery including CommerceNext IRL, ASCM Connect, and Retail Innovation Conference.

https://www.rmwcommerce.com/
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