U.S. chip giant Qualcomm recently announced that it is laying off 79 employees at its headquarters in San Diego, U.S., due to the downturn in the global smartphone market.
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According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, Qualcomm filed a layoff notice with the state of California on Feb. 28, saying it will begin laying off employees in April. The company said it is “adjusting business strategy and resource allocation” in response to market changes. According to the notice, this latest round of layoffs affects all positions but is most heavily focused on engineers and administrative and legal staff.
The layoffs come on top of Qualcomm’s firing of 153 employees in December. Even so, the company remains the largest technology company in San Diego, with more than 12,000 local employees.
During its latest earnings call in February, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said Qualcomm expects to reduce operating expenses by 5% amid a global economic slowdown and ballooning smartphone inventories.
As of Sept. 25, Qualcomm employed 51,000 full- and part-time employees in 150 locations worldwide. In the most recent fiscal year, Qualcomm added 6,000 employees, including those added through acquisitions.
In recent years, Qualcomm has faced pressure from competitors and regulators. The global smartphone market has also declined due to the impact of the new crown epidemic and chip shortages. According to market research firm Counterpoint Research, global smartphone shipments in 2022 were 1.38 billion units, down 9 per cent year-over-year.
