How Amazon’s Equity-for-Spending Deals Have Evolved

Andy Jassy and four notable vendors Amazon has taken warrants in. Rivian, Hawaiian Airlines, Kohl's and Astera Labs. Photos via Getty Images and Shutterstock.

Abubakar Idris

Amazon must have quite the investment portfolio by now. Thanks to its status as a giant tech conglomerate, Amazon often gets a chance to buy equity in its suppliers at a deep discount. Over the years, it has accumulated interests in companies providing everything from autonomous vehicle technology to air freight, according to public company filings.

For private suppliers, the details of these deals can remain secret—until they go public. And now that the initial public offering market is heating up again, we could learn of more deals Amazon has done in the past couple of years. A two-year-old deal with artificial intelligence software seller Astera Labs, which went public in March, marks the most recent example. Amazon’s total warrants had a market value of $2.2 billion at the end of 2023, according to its annual report.