Bezos says if Amazon ran like Mamdani’s $43B NYC schools, packages would take ‘six weeks to arrive’

WASHINGTON, DC: Jeff Bezos sharply criticized the management of New York City’s public school system on Wednesday, May 20, comparing it to a version of Amazon where deliveries would take “six weeks” to arrive.

Speaking during an interview on CNBC’s 'Squawk Box,' Bezos argued that increasing spending alone would not improve outcomes if underlying governance and administrative issues are not addressed. 

His remarks targeted New York City’s education budget and broader tax policies promoted by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who quickly pushed back on the remarks, defending the impact of education funding on teachers and schools.

Jeff Bezos questions NYC education spending

During the interview, Bezos pointed to New York City’s education spending levels while arguing that operational inefficiencies, rather than a lack of funding, were the core issue.

“If we ran Amazon the way New York City runs their school system, your packages would take six weeks to arrive,” Bezos said. “We’d have to charge you a $100 delivery fee. And then when the package did finally arrive, it’d have the wrong item in it anyway.”

Bezos referenced the city’s roughly $43 billion education budget and said he believes too much funding is absorbed by bureaucracy instead of reaching classrooms and teachers directly. He described the system as inefficient, though he framed those remarks as his own assessment rather than established fact.

“None of this money is getting to the teachers, I promise you,” Bezos said. “If you’re charging $44,000 per student, how much of that money do you think is trickling down to teachers? Not much.”

Bezos said Amazon employees use what he described as “the five whys” approach to identify root causes of problems rather than assigning blame. “What we don’t do, because it doesn’t work, is just point fingers and blame people,” he added.

Zohran Mamdani responds to Jeff Bezos criticism

Mayor Zohran Mamdani responded publicly to Bezos’ remarks shortly after the interview aired, disputing the suggestion that increased funding does not benefit educators. “I know a few teachers in Queens who would beg to differ,” Mamdani wrote on X. 

As Bezos also criticized Mamdani’s proposals to raise taxes on wealthy residents, arguing that increasing taxes without structural reforms would not address underlying problems.

“What’s happening here is politicians are using the kind of age-old techniques … you know, picking a villain and pointing fingers,” Bezos said. “But the problem is that doesn’t solve anything.”

Bezos further broadened the discussion to national tax policy, saying lower-income Americans should face less financial strain. “When people are starting out and they’re struggling, stop taxing them,” Bezos said. “We don’t need it. We live in the wealthiest country in the world.”