Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan told employees in a staff-wide memo yesterday that the company plans to cut its workforce by roughly 15%—more than 25,000 jobs—aiming to end the year with about 75,000 employees worldwide. The cuts are part of the struggling chipmaker’s efforts to turn things around and compete in the booming AI market.

Key Points Intel scaled back its AI accelerator ambitions earlier this year.The company now appears to be refocusing on AI inference, admitting that Nvidia's lead is just too great.Intel could find success in this portion of the AI market,

Lip-Bu Tan seemingly also said that "we are not in the top 10 semiconductor companies" any longer - a frank admission indeed.

Intel is planning to separate its networking and communications unit into a stand-alone company and has begun the process of identifying investors, the chipmaker said on Friday, as new CEO Lip-Bu Tan looks to streamline its operations.

Intel has already shifted its Edge business into its Client Computing Group (CCG), while its NEX unit was dismantled, with its networking elements integrated into both CCG and Data Center and Artificial Intelligence group (DCAI). The NEX unit had previously been floated as a potential divestiture.

Intel Corp. tumbled in premarket trading after Chief Executive Officer Lip-Bu Tan sparked concerns that he was more focused on cost cutting than restoring the chipmaker’s technological edge.

Intel shares sank 8% on Friday after the company warned of exiting chip manufacturing if it fails to secure a major customer, a potentially drastic move by the new CEO to cut spending and revive the struggling American icon.

On Friday, Intel shares tumbled 8.5% as remarks from CEO Lip‑Bu Tan prompted concerns that he’s emphasizing expense reductions at the expense of the company’s technical supremacy. In the Q2 earnings call,