The dismissals are part of a plan to cut 4% of the US giant’s global workforce.
US machine diagnostics and inspection manufacturing giant Applied Materials is implementing a global round of layoffs, in which it will lay off more than 1,400 employees worldwide, including at its development and manufacturing center in Israel. It is estimated that about 100 employees in Rehovot will be laid off as part of the move. The company announced the global move in a notification to Nasdaq, reporting that the plan is to make the company’s structure “more competitive and efficient.”
This is a reduction of about 4% of the company’s 36,1000 workforce, of whom about 2,400 are in Israel. The move was made at the end of Applied Materials’ fiscal year, and after stricter controls were imposed on the export of its inspection machines to China.
Applied has been active in Israel since it acquired the companies Opal and Orbot in the late 1990s, and it develops and manufactures machines here for producing chips and testing production quality, as well as advanced displays. Despite the news of the export restrictions, the company’s stock has climbed more than 40% since the start of 2025, and on Friday, when it announced the round of layoffs, the share price rose slightly. The company estimates that the wave of layoffs will cost it $160-180 million in compensation payments to the employees that will be dismissed.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on October 26, 2025.
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Applied Materials offices Rehovot credit: Applied Materials
