Samsung Electronics Conducts Mass Layoffs in the US Amid Diverging Business Performance
Samsung Electronics has begun cutting its workforce in the United States, with layoffs hitting operations in New Jersey and Texas as the South Korean phone giant grapples with severe pressure in its consumer electronics business. The job cuts come even as the company’s chip division is forecast to post a fantastic surge in profits.
The layoffs are affecting Samsung Electronics America, which is in the process of moving its headquarters from Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, to Texas. Samsung stated that 739 employees are impacted in New Jersey. While many are being offered the chance to relocate to Texas, others are losing their jobs. Approximately 100 workers at the SEA office in Plano, Texas, including employees from the mobile division, have also been laid off.
Company documents described the move as a company-wide workforce reduction with a significant number of impacts. The layoffs highlight a sharp divergence in performance within Samsung’s business. The chip division is expected to post a 19-fold surge in profit in the second quarter of 2026 due to an explosion in demand for artificial intelligence chips, and the company has announced plans to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in new chip factories.
In contrast, Samsung’s mobile division is predicted to record a loss for the first time. Competition with Apple is intensifying, while Chinese manufacturers like TCL and Hisense continue to pressure Samsung’s television and home appliance business in the global market. The rise in chip prices due to the AI boom is also squeezing the consumer electronics business.
Samsung said the headquarters relocation may cause changes in its workforce structure, such as employees who cannot relocate or certain functions being optimised to align with core business priorities. Workers are concerned that the layoffs will continue and be followed by consolidation of the home appliance, home entertainment, and mobile divisions, although Samsung has denied it is undertaking a massive global restructuring of its consumer products business. As of the end of 2025, Samsung Electronics had a total of 11,770 employees in the United States, including workers in the chip division.