The global digital communications giant Cisco Systems plans to lay off 7% of its workforce as it shifts its focus towards rapidly growing sectors such as artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity.
This marks the company’s second round of job cuts this year.
The San Jose, California-based company has not disclosed the number of jobs to be eliminated or whether its Irish offices will be affected. With 84,900 employees as of July 2023, the planned layoffs could impact approximately 5,900 workers. Earlier in February, Cisco had already cut about 4,000 jobs.
As part of its strategic pivot, Cisco announced a $1 billion (€908 million) investment in tech start-ups, including Cohere, Mistral, and Scale, to enhance AI product development.
The company has also partnered with Nvidia to build infrastructure for AI systems and launched a cybersecurity readiness index in March to help businesses assess their defences against cyberattacks.
Despite these initiatives, Cisco projects a 10% decline in year-on-year revenue for the final quarter of this year.
