Some Amazon employees received a worrying calendar invitation on Tuesday, fueling concerns over anticipated job cuts expected in the coming days. The invitation referenced impending layoffs and mentioned “Project Dawn,” an initiative aimed at improving efficiency within Amazon, according to a copy obtained by Business Insider.

The calendar invitation, titled “Send Project Dawn email,” was attributed to Colleen Aubrey, senior vice president of AWS Solutions, though it appeared to have been sent by an assistant. Scheduled for 5 a.m. Pacific Time on Wednesday, the event was canceled shortly after being issued. Some employees noticed the invitation and shared details with Business Insider.

An accompanying message stated, “This is a continuation of the work we’ve been doing for more than a year to strengthen the company by reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy, so that we can move faster for customers.” Aubrey’s message added, “The notifications to impacted colleagues in our organization who are based in the US, Canada, and Costa Rica have now been completed. Changes like this are hard on everyone.”

She continued, “These decisions are difficult and are made thoughtfully as we position our organization and AWS for future success.”

Amazon is reportedly planning to cut thousands of corporate roles in the coming days, marking the company’s second round of mass layoffs since October, when approximately 14,000 jobs were eliminated, Business Insider previously reported. An Amazon spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

Following the calendar invitation’s appearance, confusion spread quickly across an internal Slack channel with more than 36,000 Amazon employees, according to messages reviewed by Business Insider. Staff questioned whether the message targeted Aubrey’s entire organization or only those whose roles were being eliminated.

One employee asked, “Am I impacted or sent by mistake to all?” Others interpreted the invitation as confirmation that the expected layoffs were imminent.

“Well, if you needed solid proof that tomorrow is legit, the Project Dawn email is it,” one employee wrote. “Looks like they wanted to use AI to send an email tomorrow and instead it sent a calendar invite today.”

At this time, it remains unclear which teams will be affected by the cuts. Some employees speculated that those who received the accidental invitation might not be among those impacted.

“People are speculating you’re safe if invited,” one employee commented.

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https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-staff-calendar-invitation-upcoming-job-cuts-project-dawn-2026-1