Cisco will cut about 4,000 jobs this quarter to expand investment in AI, the Wall Street Journal reported on May 13. That is less than 5 percent of its total workforce.

Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins (척 로빈스) said on a conference call after the fiscal third-quarter earnings release that the restructuring is meant to address a problem of not always placing needed resources in the right place, rather than cutting costs.

The report said Cisco decided on the layoffs to deploy more resources in silicon, optics, security and AI. Restructuring costs are expected to reach up to $1 billion, including severance pay and one-off termination benefits.

Cisco's third-quarter revenue, for the period ended April 25, rose 12 percent from a year earlier to $15.84 billion, beating both analysts' estimates of $15.56 billion and its own forecast. Net profit rose to $3.37 billion from $2.49 billion a year earlier.

AI infrastructure orders also rose sharply. AI infrastructure orders from hyperscalers operating large data centres reached $1.9 billion in the third quarter alone, more than tripling from $600 million a year earlier. Year-to-date orders have already exceeded the $5 billion target Cisco set for the full 2026 fiscal year.

Cisco also raised its annual forecast. It projected revenue of $62.8 billion to $63.0 billion for the 2026 fiscal year ending in late July, up from its February forecast of $61.2 billion to $61.7 billion.