Intel’s CEO has confirmed that the company will turn to layoffs to offset its disappointing forecast for the second quarter of 2025.

Lip-Bu Tan first said in an investor call and then later an employee email, explaining that the firm will recentre itself around engineering, and that its refocus on smaller teams will result in a cut to its workforce.

These cuts will affect people in the second quarter of 2025 “as quickly as possible over the next several months”.

While it is still uncertain how many workers will be cut from the tech giant, Bloomberg previously reported that it could amount to 20% of its workforce, around 21,000 employees.

The company laid off 15,000 workers in August 2024 just before the previous CEO, Pat Gelsinger, left the company in December.

The job cuts will come as part of a strategy to reduce organisational complexity.

“I’m a big believer in the philosophy that the best leaders get the most done with the fewest people,” he said in an email to employees that was later published on Intel’s website.

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Wider changes feature a common staple in many tech company’s shifting strategies – Tan is calling his workers back into the office.

By 1 September, workers will be required to attend the office four days a week, just shy of a full return to office mandate.

Tan cited better engagement, collaboration, and productivity as reasons to force workers back into the office.

Intel is joining a swath of major tech companies turning to layoffs to offset disappointing returns or to cope with shifting priorities.

While the company’s first quarter results beat expectations, it’s dismal forecasts sent its stocks sliding down by 5%.

Intel CFO David Zinsner cited the “current macro environment for “creating elevated uncertainty across the industry.”

“We are taking a disciplined and prudent approach to support continued investment in our core products and foundry businesses while maximizing operational cost savings and capital efficiency,” he said.