Despite the widespread reports of layoffs at Nvidia, the company’s CEO reassured employees that no one would be laid off. He pointed out that the company has given raises to all employees to cope with inflation, and that it was winding down its wireless modem business. In addition, Nvidia was also giving raises to its workforce to deal with the SARS-CoV-2 virus epidemic.
Nvidia’s CEO reassures employees there will be no layoffs
After the disappointing results of Nvidia’s Q2 financial report, many employees have been wondering if their jobs will be safe. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has responded to these concerns with an internal memo. In it, Huang assures employees that layoffs will not happen. However, he also reiterates that the company will be giving all employees raises to fight inflation.
Nvidia has always reassured employees that layoffs won’t happen, and Huang reiterated the same promise when the company’s financial report was dismal. The company cited falling demand, excess inventory, and a lack of availability for its GPUs. Nvidia cards are already selling for lower prices as it tries to clear the remaining stock. However, despite the recent gloomy outlook, AMD has reported a strong Q3 with a revenue of $6.6 billion.
In addition to Nvidia’s layoffs, several other tech companies have announced cuts in their workforce. Ford-backed driverless car startup Argo AI, for example, laid off 150 employees last week. The company says it had to make “prudent” changes to its business plan after a period of aggressive hiring. Another rumored layoff is the social media site TikTok, which began laying off employees on July 18 as part of a global restructuring plan. A staffer told Wired that the cuts were not as large as the company had initially anticipated.
The company has given raises to all employees to deal with rising inflation
Inflation has been affecting pay increases in many industries, but this time, Exxon gave raises to all of its employees in a bid to stay competitive. In November, consumer prices rose by 6.8%. In December, they rose by 7%. The company has also bought back $3 billion in stock from investors and raised the dividend rate by 14 percent. To determine the amount of raises to give its employees, the company used a number of factors, including the company’s performance, inflation, and local market conditions.
Companies are also worried that wages aren’t keeping up with inflation. According to a Gartner survey, 62% of workers and 72% of millennials expressed concern that their pay isn’t keeping pace with inflation. Despite the high level of concerns among managers and employees, nearly half of them plan to give raises to their employees at an equal pace with inflation.
While hot inflation has spurred some companies to open the pay spigot, many others are resisting the trend. According to Gallagher Research, nearly a third of U.S. companies didn’t increase salaries due to inflation in January and February. The reluctance is largely based on expectations that inflation will moderate in the next few months, as well as a tight labor market. Exxon, Walmart, and Microsoft are among the companies that have increased worker compensation recently.
It is winding down its Icera wireless modem business
In 2011, NVIDIA bought Icera for $367 million and had high hopes that it would help the company capture a larger share of the mobile device market. However, the company has had trouble competing against Qualcomm, which controls a vast majority of the market. It is also losing out to rival MediaTek, which competes on price. In addition, Apple and Samsung are largely focused on their own processors. As a result, NVIDIA is planning to wind down its Icera wireless modem business by June 30th, unless it finds a buyer.
Founded in 2002, Icera has about 300 employees in seven countries and a strong management team with backgrounds in cellular communications and microprocessor design. The company’s chips are used in wireless modems and are approved by 50 carriers globally. These chips enable carriers to offer wireless service anywhere from 2G to 4G. Icera’s chief executive is Stan Boland, who will lead the company as it transitions to a new phase of development.
Despite the fact that Icera is still in business, it has been in trouble for several years. Its wireless modems were not selling well and Nvidia had to seek a buyer. This will result in restructuring charges of $100 million to $125 million this year. Nvidia is also expected to have lower sales than Wall Street anticipated this year because of weak demand for PCs.
It is giving raises to all employees to deal with the SARS-CoV-2 virus epidemic
Nvidia has postponed its annual review process and is giving raises to all employees. The company has also pledged to not make any layoffs in response to the epidemic. As of January 26, Nvidia had 13,775 employees, according to its February filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company expects a $100 million hit from the coronavirus, but is still projected to make $3 billion in the first quarter of 2021.
Nvidia has taken a stand that has been unprecedented in its industry. While the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918-1919 forced nations to shut down large parts of their economies, today’s supply chains span international borders.
Nvidia is now bolstering its research on coronaviruses. The company is partnering with leading researchers and startups to use NVIDIA’s technology to simulate the virus. It is also using its technology to detect COVID-19 in CT scans and to build AI platforms that monitor hospital patients.