Amazon's quest to become a startup again; Driverless cars, 6 years later

Amazon's decision to bring its employees back to the office five days a week is a window into the challenges facing the e-commerce and technology giant, and CEO Andy Jassy's larger plan to get the company to operate like "the world's largest startup" again.

Plus, GeekWire's John Cook gets into the back seat of a driverless car for the first time since 2018, and has a very different experience.

Coverage of Amazon's announcement:

• Amazon ‘will return to being in the office the way we were’ before the pandemic, CEO tells employees
• ‘The way we were’: Amazon tries to rekindle its future by rediscovering a spark from the past
• Thoughts on Amazon’s full return to the office from a CEO who knows the value — and the trade-offs
• A ‘home run’ or a ‘cowardly’ decision? Amazon’s new in-person work policy elicits cheers and jeers
• Amazon’s new back-to-office mandate fuels debate over remote work and productivity

Waymo links and related stories:

• NPR: Armed with traffic cones, protesters are immobilizing driverless cars
• GeekWire in 2018: We rode in Uber’s self-driving car, and now we’re less confident in the future of autonomous vehicles
• Video of John's Waymo ride this week.
• The Verge: Waymo and Uber expand their robotaxi partnership to Austin and Atlanta

With John Cook and Todd Bishop; Edited by Curt Milton.

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