In short
On May 15, 1997, Amazon.com held its initial public offering, selling 3 million shares at $18 each and raising $54 million. The Seattle-based startup, founded three years earlier by Jeff Bezos as an online bookstore, became a public company at a moment when most investors were skeptical that the internet would ever become a serious retail channel. The IPO marked the beginning of a two-decade transformation that would remake retail, logistics, and cloud computing.
How it unfolded.
The five-minute version
What actually happened.
Amazon.com, Inc. is an American multinational technology company engaged in e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, entertainment, and artificial intelligence. Founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos in Bellevue, Washington, the company originally started as an online marketplace for books but gradually expanded its offerings to include a wide range of product categories, referred to as "The Everything Store". Amazon has been described as a Big Tech company.
As it was happening
11 voices, 4270 days.
One beat at a time. Click any dot on the timeline to jump, press play for autoplay, or use the arrow keys to step.
Amazon.com founded
Jeff Bezos launches Amazon.com as an online bookstore from a garage in Bellevue, Washington, initially operating under the domain name relentless.com before switching to amazon.com.
Voices from this moment (1)
Amazon.com founded
Jul 5
“Jeff Bezos launches Amazon.”
As it was happening
11 voices, 4270 days.
Day 0 · July 5, 1994
Amazon.com founded
Jeff Bezos launches Amazon.com as an online bookstore from a garage in Bellevue, Washington, initially operating under the domain name relentless.com before switching to amazon.com.
“Jeff Bezos launches Amazon.”
- Amazon.com founded, Jul 5
Day 376 · July 16, 1995
Amazon launches publicly
The website goes live to the public, beginning operations as the first online bookstore with a catalog far exceeding any physical competitor.
“The website goes live to the public, beginning operations…”
- Amazon launches publicly, Jul 16
Day 1045 · May 15, 1997
Amazon IPO
Amazon.com holds its initial public offering on the NASDAQ, selling 3 million shares at $18 per share and raising $54 million. The stock closes at $23.50 on the first day of trading.
“Amazon.…”
- The Wall Street Journal, May 16
“Internet Bookseller Amazon.”
- Reuters, May 16
“Amazon Floats on Internet Dream - Bookseller Stakes Claim…”
- Financial Times, May 17
“Amazon Takes Off - How a Garage Start-up is Rewriting Retail”
- Wired Magazine, Jun 1
“Amazon.…”
- The Seattle Times, May 16
“Amazon.”
- Amazon IPO, May 15
Day 1472 · July 16, 1998
Amazon expands beyond books
One year after IPO, Amazon launches music and video sales, signaling its intent to become a broader e-commerce platform rather than a specialized bookstore.
“One year after IPO, Amazon launches music and video sales,…”
- Amazon expands beyond books, Jul 16
Day 3055 · November 15, 2002
AWS services begin internally
Amazon begins developing what would become Amazon Web Services, initially built to handle the company's own infrastructure needs and eventually offered as a service to third parties.
“Amazon begins developing what would become Amazon Web…”
- AWS services begin internally, Nov 15
Day 4270 · March 14, 2006
AWS publicly launched
Amazon Web Services launches as a commercial offering, introducing the Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), establishing Amazon as a cloud infrastructure provider and creating a second major revenue stream.
“Amazon Web Services launches as a commercial offering,…”
- AWS publicly launched, Mar 14
The numbers.
4 numbers that anchor the scale.
By the numbers
The countable parts.
Total capital raised
$0 million
Company founding year
0
Front pages.
3 outlets carried the story: The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Wired Magazine.
Media coverage
What the world was reading.
5 pieces, ranked by how much they shaped the discourse.
The Wall Street Journal
Newspaper · United States · May 16, 1997
"Amazon.com Inc. Goes Public in Debut That Marks Internet Retail Boom"
Amazon.com raised $49.5 million in its initial public offering, pricing shares at $18 each on the NASDAQ exchange. The online bookseller's debut underscores investor enthusiasm for Internet-based retail ventures despite the company's current unprofitability.
- May 17, 1997
Financial Times
Newspaper · United Kingdom
"Amazon Floats on Internet Dream - Bookseller Stakes Claim in Online Retail Gold Rush"
Jeff Bezos' Seattle-based startup becomes one of the earliest e-commerce companies to reach public markets, betting that consumers will embrace buying books online. The IPO values the loss-making venture at nearly $440 million despite minimal revenues.
- May 16, 1997
Reuters
Tech press · United States
"Internet Bookseller Amazon.com Debuts on NASDAQ in Strong First Day"
Amazon.com shares jumped 23 percent on their first trading day, closing at $23.50 against the $18 IPO price. The strong reception reflects broader Wall Street appetite for Internet retail concepts, though analysts debate whether online book sales can sustain a $440 million valuation.
- Jun 1, 1997
Wired Magazine
Magazine · United States
"Amazon Takes Off - How a Garage Start-up is Rewriting Retail"
Synthesized from period reporting - Amazon's May IPO marks a watershed moment for digital commerce, with founder Bezos arguing that the Internet will fundamentally transform how consumers shop for books and beyond. The company's willingness to lose money for market share raises eyebrows among traditionalists.
- May 16, 1997
The Seattle Times
Newspaper · United States
"Amazon.com Soars in First Day of Trading - Local Internet Start-up Becomes Public Company"
Synthesized from period reporting - Jeff Bezos' three-year-old online bookstore went public Friday with shares popping 23 percent in their debut. The Bellevue-based company's IPO is a major milestone for the Pacific Northwest tech scene and validates Bezos' vision of Internet-driven retail.
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Sources & citations.
Sources
Where this came from.
Every claim on this page traces to a public, license-clean source. We don't asterisk well.
Wikipedia
1 source- 1.Amazon.com Inc
en.wikipedia.org