The chipmaker will begin notifying employees in November following annual performance reviews, as it seeks to strengthen workplace accountability and expand beyond its smartphone business, reports Asianlite News Desk.
Qualcomm plans to cut jobs across its global workforce as part of a performance-focused restructuring, according to an internal memo from chief executive Cristiano Amon reviewed by Reuters.
Notifications to affected employees are expected to begin in November, following the company’s annual employee reviews. The memo did not specify how many jobs would be eliminated, and Reuters said it could not immediately establish the scale of the cuts.
Amon said the move was intended to build “a stronger performance culture” and address cases where employees had “consistently fallen short of expectations”.
The company will consider business priorities, organisational requirements, and the skills and expertise needed for its future operations when deciding on the reductions.
“As we have expanded the business, so have the competencies and skills we require,” Amon wrote. “We must have the right people in the right roles so they can perform at their best and the company can continue to succeed.”
Qualcomm did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The company, one of the world’s largest smartphone chipmakers, employed approximately 52,000 people globally as of September last year, most of them full-time staff.
The planned reductions come as Qualcomm faces challenges in its traditional consumer electronics markets, with rising memory prices weighing on demand for smartphones and other devices.
Its shares have also underperformed the broader US market in 2026. Qualcomm stock has gained around 1.5% this year, compared with an increase of more than 12% in the benchmark S&P 500 and nearly 60% in the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. The shares fell about 1% in premarket trading on Tuesday.
In its latest earnings report, released in late July, Qualcomm forecast quarterly profit below analysts’ expectations. The company also warned that revenue from Apple products would decline faster than previously anticipated.
However, Qualcomm has signalled that expanding into data-centre chips and other businesses beyond smartphones could help offset the decline.
The company expects revenue growth from these areas to more than compensate for lost handset-related revenue by fiscal 2027. It also anticipates that the majority of its chip sales will come from businesses outside smartphones in that financial year, the Reuters reported.
The shift reflects Qualcomm’s efforts to capitalise on growing demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure, particularly data centres, while reducing its dependence on the smartphone market.
The workforce restructuring comes as the company seeks to align its employee skills and organisational structure with its changing business priorities.
