Qualcomm's CEO Cristiano Amon informed employees on Monday that the chipmaker will carry out a global round of job cuts tied to its annual performance review cycle, with individual notifications due to begin in November, Reuters reported, citing an internal memo it reviewed.
Amon described the move as part of an effort to build a stronger performance culture and address areas where the company has fallen short of expectations. The memo stated that business priorities, organisational needs, skills and expertise would all be factored into decisions about who is affected.
The company has not disclosed how many roles will be eliminated. Qualcomm employed approximately 52,000 people worldwide as of September 2025, according to its annual report. Reuters said it could not immediately determine the scale of the cuts.
The announcement follows smaller reductions earlier in 2026. In April, Qualcomm filed state notices covering around 105 jobs in San Diego, and the company booked $97 million in restructuring charges mostly for severance over the first nine months of its financial year, according to The Next Web. Qualcomm's own 10-Q filings show severance-related restructuring charges jumping from $29 million in the March 2026 quarter to $68 million in the June quarter, meaning costs were already rising before this memo.
The cuts come as Qualcomm navigates a strategic pivot away from smartphones. In its July earnings report, the company forecast quarterly profit below analyst estimates and warned that revenue from Apple products would decline faster than expected. Qualcomm expects non-handset businesses including AI data centres, automotive and IoT to account for the majority of chip sales by fiscal 2027. The company's shares have gained just 1.5% in 2026, compared with gains of more than 12% for the S&P 500 and nearly 60% for the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.
Amon's memo acknowledged that the company's expansion into new markets has also changed the competencies its workforce requires, suggesting the cuts may partly reflect a realignment of skills rather than a simple headcount reduction.
Source : Reuters
