Amazon announced it will be hiring up to 600 technology professionals over the next few years, as it expands its Toronto Tech Hub with new tech jobs in software development, machine learning, digital advertising, cloud computing and artificial intelligence.

This is in addition to the 800 staff the company already employs in Ontario’s capital, focusing on research and software development for AWS, Alexa, and business development for Amazon Advertising.

This comes as extra positive news to the area which has also seen many of the other big tech companies, such as Shopify, Microsoft and Facebook, all opening new offices and hiring new employees.

The113,000 square foot office in Scotia Plaza, downtown Toronto will become one of the 18 tech hubs Amazon has scattered across North America.

In a statement, Tamir Bar-Haim, Amazon’s Toronto site lead and head of Amazon advertising in Canada, said: “Amazon is excited to create hundreds of new highly-skilled jobs in Toronto.

“Toronto has a well-educated and diverse workforce, and there’s a real culture of innovation here.”

Ontario Premier, Doug Ford, said Amazon’s investment is “a vote of confidence” in the province’s skilled workforce and its business environment and that “it sends a clear signal to the world that Ontario is Open for Business”.

Since 2011, Amazon has invested over $3bn in Canada, including customer fulfilment and research facilities, and cloud infrastructure and compensation to its employees.