Intel Prepares for Massive Layoffs Amid CPU Scandal and Technological Shifts

As Its CPU Scandal Deepens, Intel Plans to Cut Thousands of Jobs

The chipmaker is reportedly cutting jobs as it faces down a gloomy earnings report and a growing product scandal. CPU manufacturer Intel is set to cut thousands of jobs according to a new report from Bloomberg. It’s another blow to the embattled chip giant as it faces a consumer scandal around CPUs and struggles to find its place in a shifting chip market. Intel is scheduled to report its second-quarter earnings on Thursday and, according to an anonymous source speaking to Bloomberg, it will share its plans to cut 110,000 employees. Intel started cutting jobs in October 2022 and hasn’t stopped since, removing 5% of its total staff in 2023 alone. The pending job cuts are just the latest piece of bad news for the chip giant. Customers with 13th and 14th-generation Intel CPUs have been having problems for months. The chips were plagued with constant crashes and blue screens of death, especially while performing heavy workloads like gaming. Video game communities have been warning their friends off the Intel CPUs online for months. NVIDIA pointed the finger at Intel in April patch notes for its GPU drivers. The developers behind the popular free-to-play video game Warframe shared statistics for the recent spate of crashes in early July. “After aggregating hundreds of reports from helpful players we discovered a pattern: almost all were coming from systems with 13th and 14th generation Intel processors,†the devs said in the Warframe forums. Other crash dumps from other developers confirmed enormous crash rates for gamers using 13th and 14th-generation intel CPUs. People who dug into the problem suspected it had something to do with the CPUs improperly handling voltage. Intel eventually confirmed this and admitted that a manufacturing issue also affected some of the older CPUs in the 13th and 14th gen. On July 22, Intel finally admitted that the CPUs weren’t handling the voltage correctly and that it would push out a microcode patch in the middle of August that would fix the issue. The problem is that voltage issues like this can permanently damage a chip. All that electricity and heat can degrade a CPU, shortening its lifespan and hurting its performance. Those chips affected by the voltage problem are likely permanently damaged. Is Intel going to issue a recall or stop selling the chips until it has a fix in place? No, it told The Verge. All hope is not lost, however. Intel CPUs come with a three-year limited warranty and it’s possible people with fried chips can send them back to Intel for a replacement. The Verge asked if Intel planned to extend this warranty or tweak it to make things easier for people with affected chips to get a replacement, but Intel didn’t respond. There was a time when Intel was the only real option if you wanted a high-powered CPU in your desktop but that hasn’t been the case for quite a while. AMD offers competitive prices for similar performance. And when AMD recently had issues with its high-end CPUs, it delayed shipping them out of an abundance of caution. Semiconductors make the world go â€~round but they’re not all created equal. AI has created an enormous demand for silicon, but not the CPU Intel is famous for. The company has gradually entered the GPU market and is pushing itself as an AI solution, but it’s hard to watch it struggle with the chipset it’s known for and imagine it’s doing great things in the market that it wants to disrupt.

Intel could be set to announce more major job cuts, with thousands of workers potentially hit

Intel is reportedly preparing to cut thousands of jobs in an effort to reduce costs and tackle poor revenue predictions and decreased market share. A Bloomberg report claims the layoffs could be announced within days, according to sources familiar with the plan cited by the publication. Intel, which has approximately 110,000 employees, is set to report its most recent quarterly earnings tomorrow. Last quarter, the company drew in $12.7 billion in revenue, up 9% year-over-year, but that same growth is not expected to continue. Under the leadership of CEO Pat Gelsinger, Intel has been heavily investing in R&D to enhance its technology, in a bid to regain lost market share in the semiconductor industry, where it has faced increased pressure from the likes of AMD and Nvidia in recent years. Intel recently hired Naga Chandrasekaran from Micron Technology to oversee the company's manufacturing efforts, indicating significant focus in that department. Intel has an estimated market cap of $128.26 billion, only a touch higher than half of AMD's, at $223.76 billion. Nvidia, with the help of rapidly accelerated interest in AI, now stands as the world's third-most valuable company, with a market cap of $2.551 trillion. Analysts are now expecting that Intel will report fairly flat second-quarter revenue compared with the previous year, with some growth anticipated later in the year. The company hopes for its first annual revenue increase since 2021 when it reports its full fiscal year results in around six months time. If the layoffs go ahead, they could be the first of this scale for the company in more than a year. While tech layoffs have slowed down globally compared with 2023, layoffs.fyi has still tracked nearly 110,000 this year to date.

Intel set to announce another round of layoffs, involving 'thousands' of workers - SiliconANGLE

Intel set to announce another round of layoffs, involving 'thousands' of workers Intel Corp. is expected to layoff thousands of workers in the coming days in an effort to trim its cost base, as it pursues an ambitious plan to regain its status as the world's top chipmaker. That's according to a report from Bloomberg, which cites anonymous sources as saying the job cuts could be announced as soon as this week. In recent years, Intel has struggled with declining earnings and revenue, and has reportedly been losing market share to its rivals. Intel, which currently employs around 110,000 people - excluding those who work at its Intel Foundry subsidiary - is set to announce its second quarter earnings results on Thursday, and could well reveal the job cuts then. Under its Chief Executive Pat Gelsinger, Intel has been investing heavily in research and development to advance the company's chip technology to compete better with rivals such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which is currently the world's top chipmaker. The company was once the most dominant player in the semiconductor industry, but in recent years its fortunes have been on the wane. The decline has boosted rivals such as Advanced Micro Devices Inc., which have gained market share in key segments such as the personal computer chip market, at Intel's expense. Intel's shares gained just over 1% on the report, though the company itself declined to comment, Bloomberg said. While Intel has struggled, rivals such as Nvidia Corp. have raced ahead in the development of advanced chips for the lucrative artificial intelligence segment. AI chips have been in high demand for the best part of two years, and Nvidia's sales have rocketed, to the point where it briefly became the world's most valuable publicly-traded company earlier this year. Meanwhile, Intel has struggled to keep up in the development of AI chips, and has also faced uneven demand for traditional central processing units that power PCs, laptops and data center servers. In that segment, it has faced stiff competition from AMD, not helped by significant problems with some of its newest CPUs. Besides spending money on designing more advanced chips, Intel has also embarked on a factory-building spree, as part of its plan to manufacture semiconductors for other chipmakers. In line with that plan, Intel last year announced the creation of its Intel Foundry subsidiary, which could eventually be spun off as a separate business entirely. Earlier this year, Intel hired Naga Chandrasekaran from Micron Technology Inc. as its new Chief Global Operations Officer. In that role, Chandrasekaran will oversee the company's manufacturing operations. Intel has invested billions of dollars into building new chip factories in the U.S., Europe and Israel, and has gone to some lengths to secure funding for those efforts. As well as receiving billions of dollars in grants, the company has also sold significant stakes in some of its new chip fabs to private equity firms. But even as it looks to cut costs elsewhere, Intel hasn't been afraid to spend money when it feels it's worthwhile. It recently invested $15 million into a AI-focused construction technology startup called Buildots Ltd. At the time, analysts said Intel may be hoping to leverage Buildot's technology to boost the efficiency of its chip fab construction projects in order to accelerate its recovery plan. Last year, Intel laid off around 5% of its workforce, which came after a previous round of job cuts in October 2022. The company has also reduced spending in other parts of its business as it looks to balance the books. Wall Street analysts forecast Intel's second quarter revenue to remain flat from the same period one year earlier, though they're confident that sales might pick up in the second half of fiscal 2024. Intel's full-year revenue is expected to grow by 3% to $55.7 billion, which would represent its first revenue gains since 2021.

Intel may announce thousands of job cuts this week - Times of India

Intel is reportedly planning to cut more jobs this financial year. According to Bloomberg, the company plans to eliminate thousands of jobs to reduce costs and fund an ambitious effort to rebound from an earnings slump and market share losses. The report cites unnamed sources who said that the US chip maker may announce job cuts as early as this week.Intel has about 110,000 employees, excluding workers at units that are being spun out. Previous job cuts at Intel Intel had announced job cuts in October 2022. It reduced its workforce by about 5% in 2023. The company expected those cost reductions would save as much as $10 billion by 2025. Earlier this year, Intel laid off approximately 62 employees at its headquarters in Santa Clara, California. The workforce reduction was then led by Christoph Schell in the Sales and Marketing Group. Intel faces competition from AMD, Nvidia Intel remains a major player in the personal computer and server markets. However, it has struggled to keep pace with the rising demand of artificial intelligence (AI) chips against rivals, such as Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Nvidia, etc. As per the report, Chief Executive Officer Pat Gelsinger is spending heavily on research and development aimed at improving Intel's technology and helping it return to prominence in the semiconductor industry. Intel has been making a concerted effort to expand into the foundry business, manufacturing chips for other companies. Recently, other chipmakers led by Nvidia Corp. have sprinted ahead in the development of lucrative semiconductors tailored for demanding AI-related tasks. Earlier this month, Intel hired Naga Chandrasekaran from Micron Technology Inc. as chief global operations officer. Chandrasekaran has been put in charge of the company's overall manufacturing efforts. The TOI Tech Desk is a dedicated team of journalists committed to delivering the latest and most relevant news from the world of technology to readers of The Times of India. TOI Tech Desk's news coverage spans a wide spectrum across gadget launches, gadget reviews, trends, in-depth analysis, exclusive reports and breaking stories that impact technology and the digital universe. Be it how-tos or the latest happenings in AI, cybersecurity, personal gadgets, platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and more; TOI Tech Desk brings the news with accuracy and authenticity.

Intel prepares to slash thousands of jobs, focuses on technological advancements and cost-cutting

Intel Corp. plans to eliminate thousands of jobs to reduce costs and fund an ambitious effort to rebound from an earnings slump and market share losses. The workforce reduction may be announced as early as this week, according to people familiar with the company's plans, who asked not to be identified because the information isn't public. Intel, which is scheduled to report second-quarter earnings Thursday, has about 110,000 employees, excluding workers at units that are being spun out. Chief Executive Officer Pat Gelsinger is spending heavily on research and development aimed at improving Intel's technology and helping it return to prominence in the semiconductor industry. The company's once-dominant position eroded under Gelsinger's predecessors as rivals, such as Advanced Micro Devices Inc., have caught up and taken market share. An Intel spokesperson declined to comment. Read: We wish to democratize AI: Intel India president Intel shares rose about 1% in late trading, reaching as high as $31.11, on the news. Other chipmakers led by Nvidia Corp. have sprinted ahead in the development of lucrative semiconductors tailored for demanding artificial intelligence-related tasks. Intel is also coming to grips with uneven demand for chips that run laptops and desktop computers, its main business. Gelsinger, betting that Intel can improve its technology, embarked on a plan to build factories to manufacture semiconductors for other chipmakers. Last week, Intel hired Naga Chandrasekaran from Micron Technology Inc. as chief global operations officer, putting him in charge of the company's overall manufacturing efforts. Read: Intel chief ready to go it alone on chip manufacturing Intel reduced its workforce about 5% in 2023 to 124,800 by year's end after announcing job cuts beginning in October 2022. It also has slowed spending in other areas. The company expected those cost reductions would save as much as $10 billion by 2025. Analysts project that Intel will report that second-quarter revenue was flat, compared with a year earlier. Growth will pick up modestly in the second half of 2024, and total sales will increase 3% to $55.7 billion for the full year, according to Wall Street estimates. That would be the first annual revenue increase since 2021. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com SHARE Copy linkEmailFacebookTwitterTelegramLinkedInWhatsAppRedditPublished on July 31, 2024

Intel Layoff: Thousands of Jobs On The Line To Manage Company Costs - News18

(Reuters) -Intel plans to cut thousands of jobs to finance a recovery and cope with eroding market share, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Shares of the chipmaker, which is set to report quarterly results on Thursday, were up about 1% in extended trading. The stock has slumped 40% so far this year. Intel declined to comment on the report when contacted by Reuters. The U.S chipmaker remains a major player in the personal computer and server markets, but has struggled to keep pace with the growing demand for chips used in AI applications. CEO Pat Gelsinger has initiated a turnaround to regain the company's competitive edge, focusing on revitalizing its manufacturing capabilities, investing in advanced chip technologies, and expanding into new markets. In October 2022, Intel announced a cost-reduction plan that included "people actions", aimed at slashing annual costs by $3 billion in 2023, reducing the chipmaker's headcount to 124,800 at the end of 2023 from 131,900 a year earlier, according to regulatory filings. The plan was expected to provide annual cost savings between $8 billion and $10 billion by 2025, the company had said in February last year. Analysts expect the company's second-quarter revenue to be about the same as a year earlier, with data center and AI segment set to post a 23% decline, according to LSEG data. Intel, traditionally known for designing and manufacturing its own chips, has been making a concerted effort to expand into the foundry business, manufacturing chips for other companies. Investors expect a push to promote chip manufacturing in North America by the Biden administration to diversify supply chains and reduce reliance on Taiwan to boost Intel's prospects.

Word is that Intel will Reduce Workforce by 10,000 Jobs, Saving $10 Billion by 2025

Intel is reportedly planning to cut its workforce by 10,000 employees, sources told Bloomberg. This move is seen as a response to increasing pressure from shareholders and a strategy to cope with recent declines in the company's market performance. Over the past few years, competitors like AMD and NVIDIA have made significant inroads into Intel's market share. Currently, Intel has about 110,000 employees worldwide, and this reduction would decrease that number to around 100,000, not counting employees from previously spun-out units like the Altera FPGA company. The company expects these job cuts to lead to savings of about $10 billion by 2025. It's possible that Intel could announce these reductions as early as this week, though the exact details are still under wraps, according to insiders. Intel is also on schedule to release its second-quarter financial results soon. Under the leadership of CEO Pat Gelsinger, Intel has increased its investment in research and development. Gelsinger's strategy aims to enhance Intel's technological capabilities and reclaim its leadership position in the semiconductor sector. During prior management periods, Intel saw a decline in its dominance as companies like AMD began to rise. Despite these challenges, Intel's stock has shown resilience, with a slight increase of about 1%, closing at $31.11 recently. In the competitive landscape of the semiconductor market, companies like NVIDIA have excelled, particularly in creating chips for artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Intel faces ongoing fluctuations in demand for its core products -- chips for laptops and desktops. To tackle this, Gelsinger has launched initiatives to build new factories aimed at producing semiconductors not just for Intel but also for other chipmakers. In a significant move to strengthen its manufacturing operations, Intel recently appointed Naga Chandrasekaran from Micron Technology Inc. as its Chief Global Operations Officer. This isn't the first time Intel has scaled back its workforce; the company reduced its employee numbers by about 5% in 2023, following job cuts announced in October 2022. These measures brought the total number of employees down to 124,800. Additionally, Intel has been making cuts in other spending areas, which are also expected to contribute to the $10 billion savings by 2025. Source: Bloomberg

Intel to eliminate thousands of jobs in cost-cutting effort - Bloomberg

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) is expected to eliminate thousands of jobs as it works to reduce its costs and help fund its turnaround plan. The job cuts may be announced as early as this week, according to a Bloomberg report on Tuesday, which cited people familiar with the matter. Intel is set to report Q2 results on Thursday after the close. Developing story ... More on Intel Buy Intel Stock Before Its Reputation Is Fixed Intel: Attractive Value After Large Sell-Off (Rating Upgrade) Intel: 3 Recent Failures AMD has 'over corrected' into earnings, Barclays says; announces Taiwan investment AI drives sustainability despite concerns over data center energy consumption