The computer networking giant, which has offices in Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary, said the layoffs are part of a restructuring plan in which Cisco will shift resources toward artificial intelligence, cloud and cybersecurity. The company expects the cuts will cause pre-tax charges of up to US$1 billion in severance and termination benefits. Cisco spokesperson Samantha Campana declined to say whether the job losses will affect its Canadian workforce. (The Logic)

Talking point: Cisco’s stock closed up nearly seven per cent Thursday. The company’s revenue fell 10 per cent in the quarter ending July 27, and net income declined 45 per cent compared from a year ago, though the results beat analyst expectations. Financing the US$28-billion acquisition of cybersecurity firm Splunk hit Cisco’s bottom line, and the company will be rearranging various divisions into a single team as it integrates with Splunk. The company is also using AI internally in its “customer experience” division for at least 50 per cent of service requests, CEO Chuck Robbins said in an earnings call.