GoKawiilQualcomm to cut jobs worldwide in performance-based review, starting November
Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon told employees the company will lay off workers globally following annual performance reviews, with affected staff to be notified starting in November. The memo, reported by Reuters, said the cuts target employees who have consistently underperformed, though it did not disclose which departments or how many jobs would be affected. Qualcomm had about 52,000 employees at the end of its 2025 fiscal year.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The layoffs come as Qualcomm faces slowing smartphone chip demand amid rising memory costs, while its stock has lagged far behind the broader semiconductor index. Framing the cuts as performance-based rather than a broad restructuring could let Qualcomm trim costs while retaining engineering talent it needs for its push into AI data center chips, automotive platforms, and edge computing. The company has said it expects data center growth to offset other revenue losses by fiscal 2027, suggesting the layoffs are tied to a broader strategic pivot beyond its traditional mobile chip business.
- Qualcomm will begin notifying laid-off employees in November after performance reviews.
- The company employed about 52,000 people at the end of fiscal 2025; exact cut numbers weren't disclosed.
- The move coincides with Qualcomm's shift toward AI data center and edge computing chips amid weak smartphone demand.
Source: tomshardware.com — Etiido Uko, 2026-10-21
Published there as: “Qualcomm to cut jobs globally in "performance-based" layoffs, as company pivots to AI data center and edge computing markets”
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