Amazon Buys DuckLabs Talent, Leaves Code Free for Rivals
Amazon has acquired DuckLabs' engineering team and roadmap influence for an undisclosed price. The deal does not include the intellectual property, trademark, or rights to prevent competitors from using the same code, which remains free under a permissive MIT license.
The DuckDB project will stay with an independent nonprofit foundation, allowing Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud to continue shipping it without owing Amazon a cent. This move is seen as a strategic expansion of Amazon's ecosystem, particularly in the analytics engine space, where DuckDB has gained significant traction with over one million daily downloads.
The acquisition comes as Amazon Web Services (AWS) continues to grow its 37% year-over-year quarterly business, which now stands at $42.23 billion. The company's operating margin is a healthy 39%, and it boasts a massive backlog of $496 billion. However, the deal also highlights the challenges faced by AWS in converting AI demand into paid, high-margin core consumption.
As Amazon continues to invest heavily in its infrastructure buildout, with planned capex of $200 billion for 2026, the key variable is whether the company can accelerate growth and returns on that investment. Analysts are bullish about AWS' potential, with a target price of $328.17, but the bear case remains centered around cash-flow pressures and the high cost of infrastructure buildout.