Intel to Trim Workforce to 75,000 “Core Employees”

Sure thing, here goes:

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So, Intel, right? They’ve been through a bit of a rollercoaster lately. It feels like every time you turn around, they’re laying off folks. Just last month, bam! Thousands of jobs gone because they’re all about AI now. Makes you wonder what’s going on behind those closed doors.

Anyway — where was I? Oh, right. They just dropped their Q2 earnings or something, and now they’re saying they’re trimming their workforce to 75,000 core people. I mean, “core”? What even is that? Some math by The Verge says that means around 24,000 people are getting the axe. Ouch.

And those big facility plans in Germany and Poland? Yeah, gone. Like poof. Supposedly these were gonna create lots of jobs, but now Intel’s pulling the plug. It’s like one step forward, two steps back with them.

Speaking of setbacks, they’ve got this plan to shift operations from Costa Rica to Vietnam, but wait! They’re not shutting down completely in Costa Rica. I guess some people stay, if that’s a silver lining. CFO dude David Zinsner is also saying stuff about slowing down in Ohio because, well, they’ve got to keep their wallets tight or something.

Slashing costs by $17 billion is no joke. But then again, they might keep bleeding cash this quarter. Not a finance expert, but that sounds bad. No idea when the next knife-drop is for layoffs either. Keep your ears to the ground, I guess?

Oh, Intel, what have you gotten yourself into? It’s like, remember when they were the cool kids of PC chips from the 80s to early 2000s? Then trends shifted…and they didn’t. Sad trombone moment right there. Mobile and AI tech left them in the dust. Competitors like Apple and NVIDIA are doing the cha-cha while Intel stumbles through a waltz. Weird visual, I know, but it fits.

In ‘23, they mentioned losing $7 billion — and $5.2 billion the year before. Oof. And nobody’s forgotten about that Intel Core Ultra flop. They released those chips, everyone yawned, so they had to fast-track the Series 2. Pressure much?

Oh, and the TSMC drama! Former CEO Gelsinger went on about Taiwan not being stable. TSMC was like, “What’s up with that?” and cut off Intel’s sweet 40% discount. Just like that. Boom, more financial gut punches.

And I’ve noticed more PCs are jumping on the AMD bandwagon this year. Coincidence? Maybe. But feels like Intel’s once-loyal fans are side-eyeing their decisions now.

Okay, so what now? Intel’s crossing their fingers on these new Panther Lake and Nova Lake chips. Only time will tell if they can bounce back or if they keep tripping over their own shoelaces. Stay tuned for the next episode, I guess.