Tech Giant Cisco Lays Off 4,000+ Employees to Concentrate on AI

Networking giant Cisco is laying off more than 4,000 employees to shift focus and resources towards developing its AI capabilities.

The New York Post reports that Cisco, the multinational technology conglomerate, announced plans to cut more than 4,000 jobs across its global workforce in order to redirect resources into AI initiatives. The layoffs account for approximately five percent of Cisco’s 85,000 employees and are expected to cost the company $800 million in severance packages.

In an earnings call, Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins stated that the company would be focusing on “high-growth areas such as AI and software development.” He emphasized Cisco’s goal to “capitalize on the multibillion-dollar AI infrastructure opportunity” through partnerships with companies like Nvidia. Cisco recently collaborated with Nvidia to develop AI products for enterprise use.

The announcement comes alongside Cisco’s quarterly earnings report, which showed adjusted profits of $0.87 per share and revenues of $12.79 billion. However, Cisco also trimmed its annual revenue forecast from a high of $55 billion down to a range of $51.5-$52.5 billion. Robbins cited “weak demand with our telco and cable service provider customers” as a factor in the adjusted projections.

Cisco joins a growing list of tech companies that have conducted layoffs in 2024, including Snap, Google, eBay, Microsoft, Amazon, and SAP. These workforce reductions highlight an industry-wide slowdown as economic volatility persists.

Cisco’s restructuring efforts mirror the successful downsizing approach taken by Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, which reduced its employee count by 22 percent last year. In his remarks, Robbins framed the layoffs as a necessary step to free up resources for strategic AI capabilities. He stated, “Our innovation sits at the center of an increasingly connected ecosystem and will play a critical role as our customers adopt AI and secure their organizations.”

As experts predict long-term job disruption at the hands of AI, Silicon Valley progressives may be surprised to find their own industry on the chopping block.

Read more at the New York Post here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.