San Jose, CA – Cisco Systems Inc., the world’s leading networking technology firm, is set to lay off approximately 4,000 employees in its second major round of job cuts for 2024. This move comes as Cisco intensifies its focus on expanding its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.
Reports indicate that Cisco’s latest round of layoffs, which could mirror the 4,000 positions cut in February, is expected to be announced next week. This announcement will precede Cisco’s fourth-quarter 2024 financial earnings report, scheduled for August 14. The company has yet to provide a comment on the layoffs.
As of July 2023, Cisco employed around 85,000 people. With the additional cuts, the company’s workforce will be reduced to just over 80,000 employees worldwide. February’s layoffs had already reduced the workforce by about 4,250 positions, impacting roughly 5% of Cisco’s global staff.
The February layoffs were part of a broader restructuring effort in response to reduced product revenues and increased caution in product ordering during the fiscal second quarter of 2024. At that time, Cisco announced it would incur approximately $800 million in restructuring costs, primarily related to severance and one-time termination benefits.
AI Investments and Future Plans Despite the job cuts, Cisco is aggressively pursuing growth in the AI sector. The company has committed to generating $1 billion in AI product orders by 2025 and has launched a $1 billion fund to invest in AI startups, including Cohere, Mistral AI, and Scale AI.
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