Intel Layoffs Widen: 5,500 Employees To Be Cut, California And Oregon Most Affected, Says Report

The move is intended to tackle rising costs and help the company navigate through persistent financial and competitive challenges, particularly in the AI and chip manufacturing sectors.

The downsizing will impact a wide range of roles, including engineers, senior management, and support staff, underlining the depth of the restructuring.

Source : Freepik

In a fresh round of job cuts, US chipmaker Intel is preparing to lay off approximately 5,500 employees across multiple states, significantly expanding the scope of its workforce reduction efforts.

The move is intended to tackle rising costs and help the company navigate through persistent financial and competitive challenges, particularly in the AI and chip manufacturing sectors, reported The Financial Express.

The new wave of redundancies comes after Intel already axed 15,000 jobs earlier in 2025. Initially, the company estimated this round would affect around 4,000 employees, but that figure has since increased by over 35 per cent.

California and Oregon Hit Hardest

According to mandatory Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filings, the largest job losses will occur in California and Oregon. In California, the number of affected positions has surged to 1,935—double the earlier projection. Oregon, home to some of Intel’s key facilities, is expected to lose around 2,932 jobs, a fourfold jump compared to initial estimates.

Arizona is also bracing for significant cuts, with 696 jobs on the line. Together, these three states account for the bulk of the 5,500 layoffs, as reported by The Times of India.

The downsizing will impact a wide range of roles, including engineers, senior management, and support staff, underlining the depth of the restructuring.

Intel Plans 20 Per Cent Workforce Reduction

The restructuring comes under the leadership of Intel’s newly appointed chief executive, Lip-Bu Tan, who aims to slash the company’s total workforce by 20 per cent in a bid to rein in costs and regain lost ground in the global semiconductor market.

During a recent internal meeting, Tan acknowledged the company's slipping status in the global chip hierarchy. “20, 30 years ago, we were really the leader. Now… we are not in the top 10 semiconductor companies,” he reportedly told employees, according to OregonLive and The Economic Times.

Intel's market capitalisation has plunged to about $103 billion, less than half its value 18 months ago, leaving it trailing behind at least 15 competitors. Meanwhile, Nvidia, bolstered by demand for AI-driven solutions, recently touched a valuation of $4 trillion.

Adding to Intel’s hurdles is scepticism surrounding its next-generation chipmaking process, Intel 18A. Despite being developed to challenge Taiwanese rival TSMC’s cutting-edge technologies, Reuters reports suggest CEO Pat Gelsinger has admitted that customer uptake for the new process remains uncertain.

Intel now finds itself in a critical transition phase, attempting to reinvent its business while responding to evolving technological shifts and intensifying competition.