# Amazon takes Forbes No. 1 on pay, chips _Amazon took No. 1 on Forbes’ 2027 Best Companies list, edging out Apple on pay, AI infrastructure and robotics._ **Published:** 2026-11-12 **Source:** https://www.startuphub.ai/ai-news/market-research/2026/amazon-takes-forbes-no-1-on-pay-chips --- [Amazon News](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/workplace/amazon-forbes-best-companies-2027?utm_source=rss) says Amazon took No. 1 on Forbes’ 2027 America’s Best Companies list, up from No. 2 last year. 500 Giants TestedDriverforbes scored 500 firms over 5000 employees across 12 categoriesFrom the articleForbes describes a different test, for the top 500 public and private firms with more than 5,000 employees, and asks which giants can still make big changes at global scale.measured byPay Leadership CitedEffectstarting pay raised to $20 hourly, average near $24, $32 with benefitsplusAI Robotics EdgeCoreai infrastructure and robotics strength helped edge out apple on chipsFrom the articleKathy Colbenson, a robotics technician in Appling, Georgia who started as a picker, repairs drives that move orders.powered byCrews To CloudOutcomeFrom the articleTyler Greenawalt, an Amazon News writer who compiled the company’s account, said the win reflects work from fulfillment crews to cloud engineers across more than 120 metrics in 12 categories.earnedForbes No.1 WinOutcomeamazon edged apple for top spot in 2027 ranking's third yearFrom the article 5 mentionsTyler Greenawalt, an Amazon News writer who compiled the company’s account, said the win reflects work from fulfillment crews to cloud engineers across more than 120 metrics in 12 categories.Up From No.2Contextclimbed from second place last year after two years trailing500 Giants TestedDriverforbes scored 500 firms over 5000 employees across 12 categoriesFrom the articleForbes describes a different test, for the top 500 public and private firms with more than 5,000 employees, and asks which giants can still make big changes at global scale.via120 Metrics JudgedContextmore than 120 metrics asking which giants still drive global scale changeFrom the article 2 mentionsHow much did pay count against Bedrock, robots and water in those 120 metrics?includesPay Leadership CitedEffectstarting pay raised to $20 hourly, average near $24, $32 with benefitsplusGrocery Discount PerkEffectuncapped 10 percent employee grocery discount highlighted as retention toolFrom the articleIt also cited an uncapped 10% employee grocery discount online and 20% in Whole Foods Market stores, plus healthcare from $5 a week, as of its 2026 announcement.AI Robotics EdgeCoreai infrastructure and robotics strength helped edge out apple on chipsFrom the articleKathy Colbenson, a robotics technician in Appling, Georgia who started as a picker, repairs drives that move orders.powered byCrews To CloudOutcomeFrom the articleTyler Greenawalt, an Amazon News writer who compiled the company’s account, said the win reflects work from fulfillment crews to cloud engineers across more than 120 metrics in 12 categories.earnedForbes No.1 WinOutcomeamazon edged apple for top spot in 2027 ranking's third yearFrom the article 5 mentionsTyler Greenawalt, an Amazon News writer who compiled the company’s account, said the win reflects work from fulfillment crews to cloud engineers across more than 120 metrics in 12 categories. [Forbes](https://www.forbes.com/sites/hnewman/2026/11/12/how-amazon-edged-out-apple-to-become-americas-best-company/) reports [Amazon](https://www.startuphub.ai/ai-news/technology/2026/amazon-prime-lands-in-south-africa) edged out Apple for the top spot for the first time in the ranking’s third year. Tyler Greenawalt, an Amazon News writer who compiled the company’s account, said the win reflects work from fulfillment crews to cloud engineers across more than 120 metrics in 12 categories. Forbes describes a different test, for the top 500 public and private firms with more than 5,000 employees, and asks which giants can still make big changes at global scale. Andy Jassy, Amazon chief executive, did not claim a single cause in the company account. He reflected on winding early careers and told young workers not to chase a perfect first job, while the company pointed to pay and tools. The company said it raised U.S. starting pay to $20 an hour, with average pay near $24 and total compensation over $32 with benefits included. It also cited an uncapped 10% employee grocery discount online and 20% in Whole Foods Market stores, plus healthcare from $5 a week, as of its 2026 announcement. On AI, the company said Amazon Bedrock gives builders one place to use models from top providers. It said Graviton adoption passed 130,000 customers, up 45% year over year as of Q2 2026, and said [Anthropic](https://www.startuphub.ai/ai-news/prediction-markets/2026/ai-ipo-race-markets-eye-openai-anthropic) committed to spend more than $100 billion on AWS over a decade, including Trainium and tens of millions of Graviton cores. Kathy Colbenson, a robotics technician in Appling, Georgia who started as a picker, repairs drives that move orders. The company said it now runs more than a million robots and introduced a new Proteus mobile robot that takes voice or text prompts, and said apprentice programs move hourly staff into maintenance roles. That safety claim sits alone. Neither Amazon nor Forbes published injury or turnover data to test whether fewer pushes and pulls changed outcomes. The company said AWS is 75% toward returning more water than it uses by 2030, uses no water for cooling about 90% of the time, and will expand reclaimed water cooling to more than 130 sites by 2030. It also cited $2.5 billion invested in 2025 toward a 50 million person Future Ready 2030 training goal, with more than 500,000 staff in Career Choice since 2012, plus 75 million meals delivered since 2020 and 32 million relief supplies for more than 250 disasters since 2017. How much did pay count against Bedrock, robots and water in those 120 metrics? --- Original analysis from [startuphub.ai](https://www.startuphub.ai), the #1 AI startup directory. © StartupHub.ai. All rights reserved. You may not republish this article in full without a license. Search engines and AI research tools may crawl and summarize for reference. Bulk reproduction or model training on this content requires a license. See https://www.startuphub.ai/terms.