According to Reuters, this new wave of layoffs could mirror the 4,250 jobs slashed in February.

Sources familiar with the matter suggest that the announcement could come as early as next week, coinciding with Cisco's fourth quarter 2024 financial earnings report on 14th August.

As of July 2023, the California-based giant employed approximately 85,000 people. With the February cuts, this latest round would reduce its workforce to just over 80,000 globally.

The February layoffs, which affected about five per cent of Cisco's workforce, were attributed to a cautious approach to product ordering during fiscal Q2 2024, which impacted product revenues.

 At the time, Cisco stated that the global job cuts were necessary to align expenses and investments with the current macroeconomic environment. The restructuring was expected to incur charges of around $800 million, primarily related to severance and other termination benefits.

Despite these cuts, Cisco is forging ahead with its AI plans, aiming to drive $1 billion in AI product orders by 2025. The company has also launched a $1-billion fund to invest in AI startups such as Cohere, Mistral AI, and Scale AI.