e-commerce
Amazon Q4 sales jump 14 per cent as AWS revenue surges 24 per cent
SEATTLE: Amazon has closed 2025 with robust fourth-quarter growth across its core businesses, even as spending on sales, marketing and infrastructure continued to climb. The company reported a 14 per cent rise in Q4 net sales to $213.4 billion, driven by solid momentum in North America, International markets and a sharp acceleration at AWS.
Sales and marketing expenses rose 8.7 per cent year on year to $14.3 billion in the quarter, reflecting sustained investment in customer acquisition and brand reach. For the full year, the bill climbed 7.3 per cent to $47.1 billion.
AWS remained the standout performer, with revenue jumping 24 per cent to $35.6 billion in the quarter, its fastest pace in more than three years. North America sales grew 10 per cent to $127.1 billion, while International revenues climbed 17 per cent to $50.7 billion, aided partly by favourable currency movements.
Operating income rose to $25.0 billion in Q4, up from $21.2 billion a year earlier, though the figure was weighed down by special charges linked to tax settlements in Italy, severance costs and asset impairments tied largely to physical stores. Excluding these, operating profit would have reached $27.4 billion.
Net income increased to $21.2 billion, or $1.95 per share, compared with $20.0 billion a year ago.
For the full year 2025, Amazon posted 12 per cent growth in net sales to $716.9 billion. AWS revenues climbed 20 per cent to $128.7 billion, while North America and International segments grew 10 per cent and 13 per cent respectively. Operating income expanded to $80.0 billion, with AWS contributing more than half of the total.
Cash generation strengthened, with operating cash flow rising 20 per cent to $139.5 billion. Free cash flow, however, fell sharply to $11.2 billion as capital spending surged, largely reflecting heavy investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure.
President and chief executive officer Andy Jassy, said demand across cloud services, advertising, retail and emerging technologies such as AI chips, robotics and low-earth-orbit satellites remained strong. He added that Amazon plans to invest around $200 billion in capital expenditure in 2026 to support long-term growth.
The company also pointed to a wave of new AWS partnerships, spanning clients such as OpenAI, Visa, the NBA, BlackRock, Salesforce, Adobe, HSBC and the London Stock Exchange Group, underscoring cloud demand across industries.
e-commerce
Instamart and Duolingo launch street spell check campaign for Instaprint
Duo the owl fixes signboard typos across cities to showcase instant printing.
MUMBAI: If spelling mistakes had a sworn enemy, it might just be a bright green owl with a printer. Instamart has teamed up with language learning platform Duolingo for a quirky nationwide campaign that turns everyday spelling errors into a public spectacle while promoting its instant printing service, InstaPrint. The playful activation takes aim at the many misspelled shop boards and public signs scattered across Indian streets. From “saloons” that promise haircuts rather than drinks to menus and posters peppered with punctuation mishaps, the campaign sends Duolingo’s mascot Duo on a mission to restore linguistic order.
Armed with Instamart’s instant printing feature, Duo prints corrected versions of the mistakes on the spot and pastes them over the originals. The result is a series of humorous street interventions that have quickly begun circulating on social media.
Photos and videos of the grammar correcting owl have been widely shared online, with amused users reacting to the unexpected spell check patrol. One user joked, “Ab ayega na maza bhidu,” capturing the internet’s delight at the unusual campaign.
Behind the humour lies a practical message. The activation is designed to showcase the capabilities of Instaprint, Instamart’s printing service that allows users to print documents and posters almost instantly.
The company says the feature is meant for everyday needs such as printing resumes, visa documents or last minute posters without the usual scramble to locate a print shop.
Instamart introduced Instaprint in 2025 across select metropolitan cities including Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi. The service allows users to order printed materials directly through the platform, extending the quick commerce model beyond groceries and household essentials.
By combining Duolingo’s famously persistent owl with India’s street level spelling quirks, the campaign taps into the internet’s long running fascination with grammar mistakes while demonstrating a real world use case for instant printing.
After all, in a world full of typos, sometimes what you really need is a quick printer and a very determined language teacher.
