What’s next for Amazon as it turns 30?

ANDin the summer In 1994, a job opening for a software engineer was posted on Usenet, an early precursor to Internet forums. The company in question planned to “pioneer online commerce.” Applicants had to be able to design complex systems “in less time than most competent people believe possible.” Resumes could be sent to Jeff Bezos at a Seattle startup called Cadabra.

The name didn’t stick—“Cadabra” was too easy to confuse with “cadaver” on the phone—but the ambition did. Amazon, which turns 30 on July 5, has truly changed the world of online shopping. This year, its websites will sell about $554 billion worth of goods in America, according to JPMorgan Chase. That gives it a 42% share of American e-commerce, far more than the 6% that Walmart, its closest online competitor (and the largest retailer overall), has.