Amazon’s headquarters campus in Seattle. (GeekWire Photo / Kurt Schlosser)
Amazon is laying off 2,198 employees across Washington as part of the company’s latest corporate workforce reduction, according to a new filing released Monday by the state Employment Security Department.
A detailed list included with the Washington state filing shows that software development roles account for the largest share of the layoffs, with engineering management, program management, and technical product roles also hit hard.
In total, more than half of the cuts impact Amazon’s core product and engineering organizations. The remaining positions span business intelligence, sales, marketing, infrastructure, QA, HR, design, and other support functions. Senior- and principal-level employees were also affected.
A majority of the cuts — more than 1,400 — impact workers in Seattle, with more than 600 in nearby Bellevue, where Amazon has been expanding its office footprint.
The cuts are part of Amazon’s company-wide layoffs announced last week that impact 16,000 corporate employees globally. Combined with a 14,000-worker layoff in October, it’s the largest corporate workforce reduction in the company’s history.
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As part of the October cuts, Amazon laid off 2,303 employees in Washington state. Between the two layoffs, Amazon has laid off more than 4,500 corporate workers in Washington state in less than a year.
Software engineers were also the largest group of employees affected by the cuts in October. Corporate support and commercial functions were hit harder in that round, which included engineering roles but also targeted legal, tax, and ad sales positions that are largely absent from the new list released Monday. The October cuts also hit Amazon’s gaming division, while this latest round is focused more squarely on the core technology organization.
The company has made several additional, smaller workforce reductions in recent years as it seeks to streamline operations. In a memo to employees sent Wednesday, Amazon senior vice president of people experience and technology Beth Galetti said the company is “reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy.”
The specific job titles in the latest Washington state filing align with that goal, particularly in the company’s technical teams. The list includes a significant number of “Manager III” and “Senior Manager” roles within software and product teams, suggesting Amazon is axing layers of oversight, not just reducing individual contributor headcount.
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Amazon noted in the filing that employees who secure internal transfers before their separation dates will not ultimately be laid off. Separations are scheduled to begin April 28 and continue through late June, according to the filing.
Tech pullback in Seattle
An Amazon Prime delivery van outside the company’s Seattle headquarters. (GeekWire File Photo / Kurt Schlosser)
Amazon employs roughly 50,000 corporate workers in the Seattle region, which serves as its primary headquarters. The company also laid off 27,000 workers globally in 2022-2023.
The Seattle area lost 12,900 jobs last year across all sectors — the first time the region has experienced an annual decrease of jobs since 2009, according to The Puget Sound Regional Council.
Amazon implemented a five-day return-to-office policy for corporate employees last year — a move that drew pushback from some workers but a friendlier reception from small businesses surrounding Amazon’s office buildings.
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Jon Scholes, president of the Downtown Seattle Association, said in a statement last week that a “workforce change of this scale has ripple effects on the community.”
The broader layoffs may also impact Seattle’s commercial real estate market, which continues to struggle with record-high vacancy rates.
(One word on the arch, though—it reduces the oven mouth width from 16.5 inches to about 13 inches. I learned the hard way one night that many pizza peels will no longer fit, including Gozney’s own large-size models. Make sure you have a peel that’s 12 inches or smaller.)
Also, thanks to the generous ceiling height, the Dome is a more versatile oven than its competitors in that it can be used for cooking meals other than pizzas. Steaks, fish, or other skillet meals are safe not to splatter on the ceiling, and two included meat probes can be connected to show real-time temps on the Gozney’s display. (Among the Dome’s accessories is a mantel designed to extend the cooking surface for things like skillets and dutch ovens, as well as a wood-handled door to enclose the oven for baking.)
King of the Road
Photograph: Kat Merck
While the Gozney isn’t a permanent install, unless you spring for the wheeled stand ($500), you will want a sturdy, semi-permanent space where it can live, as well as moving help. The stainless steel body and 30-millimeter corderite stone weigh a total of 150 pounds in the packaging—instructions recommend four people to lift the box, though my husband and I were able to lift it ourselves onto a Gorilla wagon to carry it to its testing location on our deck.
There are straps on the bottom of the oven for maneuvering, but the Dome really should only be lifted once; you will not be carrying it in and out of the garage like an Ooni. There is a cover for either the oven by itself or on its stand, but like all of the accessories, it’s not included.
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Speaking of Ooni: Like the Koda Max, the Dome heavily touts its size as being ideal for cooking “up to two pizzas at once.” However, if you’re buying a dedicated pizza oven, you probably want high heat, and if you want high heat, this requires frequent turning of a pie—usually every 30 seconds—to ensure it cooks evenly. (Gozney turning peel: $80.) Multiple pies in the oven will complicate access, to say nothing of the logistical issues. You will also likely find yourself needing to move the pie to the side farthest away from the flame at times, to avoid charring your cornicione.
The Federal Police in Germany (BKA) has identified two Russian nationals as the leaders of GandCrab and REvil ransomware operations between 2019 and 2021.
According to BKA’s disclosure, 31-year-old Daniil Maksimovich Shchukin and 43-year-old Anatoly Sergeevitsch Kravchuk acted as the heads of the two ransomware groups “from at least the beginning of 2019 until at least July 2021.”
Shchukin hid behind the monikers UNKN/UNKNOWN for years, posting on cybercrime forums and speaking as a representative of the ransomware operation.
The German authorities say that Shchukin and Kravchuk participated in at least 130 extortion cases targeting companies in the country specifically.
Following these attacks, at least 25 victims paid Shchukin and his co-conspirators $2.2 million in ransom, while the total financial damage caused by them is estimated in excess of $40 million.
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GandCrab started in early 2018, and its leader at the time decided to retire in June 2019, after claiming to have earned $2 billion from ransom payments. The leader, however, cashed out with $150 million, which they claimed to have invested in legal businesses.
Soon after, a new operation called REvil emerged, following the affiliate model established by GandCrab through advertising and building partnerships with cybercriminals.
REvil, also known as Sodinokibi, was formed from previous GandCrab affiliates and operators who had already learned the successful tactics and started to apply them to their operations.
Multiple infrastructure disruptions were recorded at the time, and in mid-January 2022, Russia arrested more than a dozen REvil gang members, who were released in 2025 after time served on carding charges.
It is unclear if either Shchukin or Kravchuk joined other ransomware operations following REvil’s demise in 2021.
BKA believes that Shchukin and Kravchuk are now in Russia and asks the public to share any information that could lead to their whereabouts. Relevant entries were also created on the EU’s Most Wanted portal.
The police shared several images, including tattoo photos, to help track down the two threat actors and bring them to justice.
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Automated pentesting proves the path exists. BAS proves whether your controls stop it. Most teams run one without the other.
This whitepaper maps six validation surfaces, shows where coverage ends, and provides practitioners with three diagnostic questions for any tool evaluation.
Tired of taking your action camera on an adventure, only to get home and find out you missed the action with a bad angle? One option is to switch to a 360-degree action cam, so you can capture all of the action and then edit down to just the good stuff later. One of our favorite options, the DJI Osmo 360, is currently available for just $390 on Amazon, a $209 discount from its usual price, and it comes with a selfie stick and an extra battery.
The DJI Osmo 360 achieves its impressive all-around video quality by leveraging a pair of 1/1.1-inch sensors, larger than some other offerings, and by supporting 10-bit color. You can really see that in the camera’s output, with colors that are vivid and bold, to the point that you may need to dial them back a bit in post if you want something more natural. With support for up to 50 frames per second at 8K when recording in 360 degrees, or 120 fps at 4K when shooting with only one sensor, you’ll have plenty of material to work with. In our testing, it ran for just shy of two hours at 30 fps, which is also around the time the internal storage had filled up anyway.
If you plan on catching any serious discussions with your Osmo 360, you’ll be pleased to know it connects directly to DJI’s line of wireless lavalier microphones, including the excellent and frequently discounted DJI Mic 2 and Mic Mini. If you want to mount it to something other than the included 1.2-meter selfie stick, it has both DJI’s magnetic attachment system and a more traditional ¼”-20 tripod mount. The DJI Mimo app lets you control the camera and adjust any settings, and there’s even a simple editor for on-the-fly production. For desktop users, DJI Studio has even more in-depth settings and editing options, in case you don’t want to pay for Premiere.
Disney has inked a deal with the Korea Esports Association that will bring several gaming tournaments to the its streaming platform. Disney+ will be the global live streaming home for Esports Champions Asia Jinju 2026, the 2026 League of Legends KeSPA CUP and some preliminary events ahead of the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026. This agreement expands KeSPA’s arrangement with Disney, which only streamed its esports events to viewers in Asia last year.
Esports Champions Asia is the first event on the calendar, occurring April 24-26 with professional teams from across the continent squaring up in tournaments for games including Street Fighter 6, The King of Fighters XV, TEKKEN 8 and the eFootball series. Disney+ will also be an official streamer for the PUBG Mobile and Eternal Return competitions during that weekend.
It could be helpful for western esports fans to have a single location for watching the major events happening in Asia. However, many tournaments are currently free to watch on Twitch or YouTube, so now needing a Disney+ subscription to catch some of these international competitions might feel onerous. Esports might run the risk of turning into the fragmented set of rights deals that plagues traditional sports leagues, where a game could be on one of a half dozen different paid services each night. It’s also likely going to mean co-streamers take a hit to their viewership, since Disney seems unlikely to offer the same sort of broadcast access that has made the practice popular on Twitch.
A few years back a company had an ad campaign with a discouraged caveman who was angry because the company claimed their website was “so easy, even a caveman could do it.” Maybe that inspired [JuliusBrussee] to create caveman, a tool for reducing costs when using Claude Code.
The trick is that Claude, like other LLMs, operates on tokens. Tokens aren’t quite words, but they are essentially words or word fragments. Most LLM plans also charge you by the token. So fewer tokens means lower costs. However, LLMs can be quite verbose, unless you make them talk like a caveman.
For example, here is some normal output from Claude:
Sure! I’d be happy to help you with that. The issue you’re experiencing is most likely caused by your authentication middleware not properly validating the token expiry. Let me take a look and suggest a fix.
After Caveman that is reduced to:
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Bug in auth middleware. Token expiry check use < not <=. Fix:
Turns out, you can understand the caveman output just fine.
There are a few rules. Caveman removes filler words, but knows to keep technical terms, code blocks, and error messages intact. It also outputs normal messages for things like commits.
As the website says: “Caveman not dumb. Caveman efficient. Caveman say what need saying. Then stop. If caveman save you mass token, mass money — leave mass star.”
If you want to code with an LLM, make sure you understand the terms of service. If you want to learn more about how LLMs work with tokens and other details, but want to skip the math, we can help with that.
A collection of YouTube channels are suing Apple under the provisions of the DMCA, with the company accused of scraping videos from YouTube and using them to train internal AI models.
Apple is accused of scraping YouTube to train its video AI models.
In a lawsuit filed on April 3 at the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, a trio of YouTube entities are suing Apple over allegations of copyright infringement. Apple is accused of violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), all to collect footage to train its AI models. The class-action lawsuit is headed up by Ted Entertainment, owners of the h3h3Productions channels and podcast. Two golf channels accompany Ted Entertainment, with MrShortGameGolf and Golfholics also involved in the legal action. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums
US Border Patrol agents are raising money by selling coins that commemorate last year’s wave of immigration enforcement “operations” across the country, along with other merchandise. The funds are for nonprofit organizations that list Border Patrol buildings as their address in IRS paperwork. At least two of the organizations have dedicated US Customs and Border Protection email addresses.
The front side of one coin for sale reads, “NORTH AMERICAN TOUR 2025,” along with the acronyms for US Border Patrol and the acronym for “fuck around and find out”—a phrase that was initially popularized by the far-right group the Proud Boys and has been used by various Trump officials. In the center, the coin depicts a gas mask, a riot control smoke grenade, and a pepper ball launcher. On the other side, the coin appears to have a portrait of Border Patrol’s now retired commander-at-large, Gregory Bovino, with his arm raised in a salute, along with the text “COMING TO A CITY NEAR YOU!” It lists seven cities, many of which actually saw federal enforcement surges in 2025: Chicago, Los Angeles, Memphis, Phoenix, Portland, Charlotte, and Atlanta.
The coin is for sale by Willcox Morale Welfare and Recreation, a nonprofit that the IRS most recently declared tax-exempt during the Biden administration and whose address on IRS paperwork matches that of the Willcox Border Patrol Station in Arizona. A request for comment sent to Willcox MWR’s dedicated CBP email address went unanswered.
Employees of the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency for Border Patrol, are allowed to start private, not-for-profit employee associations within DHS, so long as they get formally recognized by the agency and follow certain rules. According to DHS policies, officially recognized groups can fundraise using government property and create merchandise with the agency’s name and logos–but they have to receive advance approval from the agency.
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Willcox MWR is just one of several groups across the country that cater to Border Patrol agents and refer to themselves as MWRs, a reference to the US military’s “morale, welfare and recreation” programs. The groups tend to throw holiday events and retirement parties, and sometimes raise money for the families of agents going through hard times, including those not getting paid during the current shutdown.
Following the publication of this story, CBP spokesperson Hilton Beckham told WIRED that Willcox MWR and the other non-profits identified in our story had existed under previous administrations and had “received authorization to conduct limited commercial activities on CBP-occupied property.” Beckham said that the agency was in the process of updating its policies and procedures related to MWRs.
Many MWRs also sell customized medallions known as “challenge coins” that commemorate specific teams or events. While anyone, including CBP alumni, can design and sell coins, current DHS employees are not supposed to use government resources to sell ones that use the agency’s seals or logos without permission, or ones that the agency considers inappropriate or unprofessional.
Beckham, the CBP spokesperson, said, “CBP takes its branding and recognition policies seriously.” Beckham did not say whether the agency’s Publication and Branding Review Board, which is in charge of approving branded merchandise, greenlit “North American Tour” coin design.
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Under Willcox MWR’s Facebook post about the “North American Tour” coin, someone named Juan Diego commented, “Sign up SDC BK5 MWR for 10.”
“Shoot us an email,” someone managing the Willcox MWR account replied, giving out what appeared to be a dedicated cbp.dhs.gov email address for the group.
SDC BK5 MWR, also a registered nonprofit, lists an address on its website that matches that of a government facility in Chula Vista, California. It says on its site that it was started by San Diego Sector Border Patrol agents and sells custom merchandise “designed to raise funds for morale and relief efforts.”
The most recent electric vehicle sales data provided a grim picture — at least for new EVs. Sales of new electric vehicles took a beating in the first quarter, falling some 28% year-over-year after the Trump administration axed the $7,500 consumer tax credit, according to Cox Automotive.
Used EVs are moving in the opposite direction. And a couple of accelerants have combined to supercharge those sales.
First-quarter used EV sales increased 12% compared with the same quarter last year, according to that same Cox Automotive report. There’s a bit of momentum over a shorter term too; used EV sales popped 17% between the fourth and first quarters.
The rising cost of gas — the average price is above $4 a gallon — has helped spur interest and sales of electric vehicles. But there’s another factor at play here as consumers seek out affordable options: an abundance of expiring leases, the Financial Times reported. EV leases were a popular choice in the early 2020s, and now that they’ve expired, hundreds of thousands of pre-owned EVs are entering the marketplace. And consumers are ready for them.
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By the end of the year, EVs will account for 15% of all off-lease vehicles, double from 7.7% in the first quarter, the FT reported.
The ol’ economic principle of supply and demand remained steadfast; the surge of pre-owned vehicles helped push prices lower, giving those sales a further boost. That’s led to price parity — or close to it — with internal combustion vehicles. According to Cox Automotive, the average price of a used EV is $34,821 compared to $33,487 for the gas engine equivalent.
3D printing is a staple of the hacker community. From decorative items to rugged functional parts, almost anything you can think of, can be printed. [anurag.id] shows us some classic 3D printing hacks by converting his keyboard into a compact workstation.
Like any hacker project, the initial idea is small: he decides the knob on his mechanical keyboard is boring, so he designs some alternatives. First, one “retro style” knob. Then, like any good project, the scope creep begins. He makes another knob, and another… by the end he has 6 different designs! But don’t worry, the scope can get even bigger. He decides his ipad needs a good stand on his desk–and what better place to put it than on the keyboard? Now it’s starting to look like a real little workstation. Finally, as a finishing touch, he adds some magnetically-attached wrist rests for a compact, ergonomic workstation.
If you’re anything like me, a trip to the grocery store is a joy ride for the taste buds. As soon as I get home, I tear into my finds and determine what will take priority when the urge to snack or nosh strikes.
The result, unfortunately, is a sea of open bags that quickly lose their crunch and freshness. Chips and pretzels, for example, become stale, while bagged produce begins to wilt and brown.
While there are vacuum-sealed bags and accompanying air-removal devices, nothing compares to the efficiency and ease of a handheld sealer. These simple gadgets are designed to fuse the open ends of plastic containers using quick heat to prolong food’s shelf life and general tastiness.
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My small cohort of bag sealers, ready for testing.
Joey Skladany/CNET
I tested two of the highest-rated models on Amazon to determine which deserves a permanent place in my kitchen. Here’s how they stacked up.
The devices
Upon opening each package, I was surprised to see that both models offer additional capabilities beyond sealing. Each uses USB-C for charging (with a cable included).
This cheaper bag sealer came to temperature almost immediately.
Joey Skladany/CNET
Special Features: Compact size, bag slicer, magnet
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The good:
Compact size: This was preferred over Aedicce, which felt a bit too bulky. It also takes up less space in a drawer or shelf.
The sealing surface area: The compartment where you insert the bag edge is deeper, which makes the device easier to use.
No preheating: Unlike the Aedicce model, the BBDYOY heats up almost instantly.
The cutter: It’s sharper than the Aedicce and opens bags with ease.
Comes with two freebies: The company included two resealable, backpack-shaped bags, which are quite adorable for a kid’s school lunch.
The bad:
Instructions aren’t in English: While the illustrations were easy enough to decipher, the Mandarin characters can be a bit intimidating for anyone who considers themselves tech-averse.
Difficulty sealing foil-lined bags: It had trouble sealing bags with metalized film-lined interiors.
The Aedicce device took longer to heat up, but worked just as well once it did.
Joey Skladany/CNET
Special Features: Bag slicer, hanging hook/bottle opener, built-in light, magnet
The good
Multiple functions: Beyond sealing, this device hangs, opens bottles and provides an emergency light, giving customers more bang for their buck.
A stronger seal: While it takes longer to heat up, I did notice the seal was ever so slightly stronger than BBDYOY’s.
Power indicator light: You’ll know when the battery is running low, so it doesn’t die on you mid-use.
High-quality: It feels and looks more expensive than the BBDYOY model.
Both devices worked well for sealing plastic bags.
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Joey Skladany/CNET
The bad
It’s somewhat pricey: At $16, it’s certainly a significantly higher investment than a standard bag clip.
Difficulty sealing foil-lined bags: It ran into the same issue as the BBDYOY and had trouble sealing this type of bag.
Both devices had trouble creating a tight seal on chip bags with a layer of vaporized aluminum.
Joey Skladany/CNET
Final thoughts
While both models worked well with fusing standard plastic, neither successfully sealed the metalized film commonly used in chip bags. My assumption is that this material is harder to melt and, ultimately, fuse together.
Though disappointing, it wouldn’t deter me from purchasing either product, as plastic clips can only do so much to keep open bags closed and free of air. That said, the aforementioned vacuum sealer will make any handheld device pale in comparison and should be the choice for bulky items or long-term freezer storage.
Both bag releasers I tested performed equally well, creating a tight clamp on plastic bags but struggling to seal anything with a layer of vaporized aluminum. So, you can’t go wrong with either option. Splurge a bit more for the Aedicce if you want extra tools, but the BBDYOY works just as well and fits in smaller spaces when not in use.
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