Qualcomm layoffs are coming. CEO Cristiano Amon told employees in a memo that the chipmaker will cut jobs worldwide in a “performance-focused reduction” after its annual reviews, with notifications starting in November, according to Reuters, which reviewed the memo. How many jobs? The memo doesn’t say, and Reuters couldn’t determine the scale.
What the Qualcomm layoffs memo says
Amon described the move as part of building “a stronger performance culture.” Reuters reports it targets staff who have “consistently fallen short of expectations.” The memo says business priorities, organizational needs, and skills will be considered, and that the skills Qualcomm needs have changed as the business has grown. The company didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Reuters says Qualcomm had about 52,000 employees as of September last year. Without a headcount target, there’s no way to say what share of that workforce the Qualcomm layoffs affect.
Why Qualcomm layoffs follow a weak year for phones
A slump in consumer electronics sales has hit the company this year, as high memory prices weigh on demand, Reuters reports. In its late-July earnings report, Qualcomm forecast quarterly profit below estimates. It also said revenue from Apple products would fall faster than expected.
Its shares are up just 1.5% in 2026, Reuters says. The S&P 500 is up more than 12%, and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index nearly 60%. Shares rose more than 1% on Tuesday after trading about 0.5% lower earlier.
The data center bet behind the cuts
Qualcomm says growth in data-center and other non-handset businesses should more than offset the lost phone revenue by fiscal 2027. By then, most of its chip sales are expected to come from outside smartphones, according to Reuters. That makes the Qualcomm layoffs part of a bigger shift in what the company sells. It’s a volatile market, as Super Micro’s AI-driven forecast showed.
It’s also a busy month for corporate headcount. Our report on HubSpot, Amazon and Netflix job cuts found each company giving a different reason. Qualcomm’s is performance.
Editor’s take
A performance-based cut is a harder message than a restructuring, because it says the company is judging people and not just roles. Whether the Qualcomm layoffs are a cost measure is the open question, and the next earnings call is where to look.
