The Workforce AI Index · Technology
Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO)
Networking maker, split by segment revenue. Read October 1, 2026 from the annual report for the period ending 2026-07-25, filed 2026-09-02. Ranked 15 of the 24 Technology companies read so far, by the share within reach now: the sector.
The filing states approximately 82,400 employees and counts only its sales function, so the patterns follow segment revenue, hardware, software and services (c).
The figures on this page come from the company's own annual report and from BLS staffing patterns for its industries, never from a roster. They are estimates with a stated method. Nothing here says what the company will do: within reach is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
What follows from the reading
Share of working time within reach of AI, on the long-run pace at four in five: 21% now, 47% at the end of 2027, 58% at the end of 2028, 64% at the end of 2030. By the patterns, the work is about 64% desk work, 20% people work and 16% body work. These are the site's industry estimates weighted by the shares below: estimates with a stated method and range, not a forecast of what the company will do. By the same patterns, at the end of 2028 about 36% of the working time stays with people (conversation, in-person and hands-on work), 50% becomes checking a model's work and 8% could be handed over with lighter checks, from the industries' own figures, not the company's roles.
Headcount
82,400 employees as of 2026-07-25 (stated). The filing gives no count by country; revenue by geography puts the United States at 60%.
The filing: “As of July 25, 2026, we had approximately 82,400 employees.”
The workforce as industry patterns
| Pattern | Share | Reason, from the filing |
|---|---|---|
| Communications Equipment Manufacturing | 60% | By revenue (c): Networking at 55% of revenue, the hardware the filing designs and sells, the industry its SIC code names, with no count by segment. |
| Software Publishers | 25% | By revenue (c): Security, Collaboration and Observability at 22% of revenue, the software products the filing describes, with no stated count. |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 15% | By revenue (c): Service at 24% of revenue, the support and professional services the filing describes, weighted down because much of it is delivered by partners, with no stated count. |
What the filing says about the workforce: Approximately 82,400 employees, down from 86,200; the sales and marketing functions about 25,400 employees including managers, sales representatives and technical support, a function count recorded here and not used as a pattern.
What the filing says about AI
79 sentences in the filing name AI. The filing names AI in 79 sentences: AI-powered digital infrastructure among what it designs and sells, AI incorporated across its networking, security, collaboration and observability products, and a world shaped by AI in its strategy.
- “Business General Cisco designs and sells a broad range of technologies including hardware, software, and artificial intelligence (AI) powered digital infrastructure to power, help secure, and draw insights from the Internet.”
- “We are incorporating AI into our product portfolios across networking, security, collaboration and observability, as well as integrating our products more tightly together into a platform.”
- “As such, we encourage investors, the media, and others to follow the channels listed above, including the social media channels listed at the bottom of our Investor Relations website, and to review the information disclosed through such channels. 1 Table of Contents Strategy and Priorities In today's fast-paced world shaped by AI, businesses and organizations globally are deploying technology t...”
- “Our customers have three key priorities in this dynamic environment: i) to build modern infrastructure; ii) to protect against the cyber threats of today and tomorrow; and iii) to harness the power of AI and data.”
- “Cisco is at the forefront of this evolution, developing innovative solutions that leverage advanced AI to deliver more valuable outcomes for our customers.”
Headcount by filing year
As reported in each year's annual report, with the filing. A year marked not read had no figure the reading could take from the report's text.
| Period | Employees | Filed | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-25 | 82,400 | 2026-09-02 | 10-K |
| 2025-07-26 | 86,200 | 2025-09-03 | 10-K |
| 2024-07-27 | 90,400 | 2024-09-05 | 10-K |
| 2023-07-29 | 84,900 | 2023-09-07 | 10-K |
| 2022-07-30 | 83,300 | 2022-09-08 | 10-K |
| 2021-07-31 | 79,500 | 2021-09-09 | 10-K |
| 2020-07-25 | 77,500 | 2020-09-03 | 10-K |
| 2019-07-27 | 75,900 | 2019-09-05 | 10-K |
| 2018-07-28 | 74,200 | 2018-09-06 | 10-K |
| 2017-07-29 | 72,900 | 2017-09-07 | 10-K |
| 2016-07-30 | 73,700 | 2016-09-08 | 10-K |
| 2015-07-25 | 70,000 | 2015-09-08 | 10-K |
| 2014-07-26 | 74,042 | 2014-09-09 | 10-K |
| 2013-07-27 | 75,049 | 2013-09-10 | 10-K |
| 2012-07-28 | 66,639 | 2012-09-12 | 10-K |
| 2011-07-30 | 71,825 | 2011-09-14 | 10-K |
| 2010-07-31 | 70,700 | 2010-09-21 | 10-K |
| 2009-07-25 | 65,550 | 2009-09-11 | 10-K |
| 2008-07-26 | 66,129 | 2008-09-15 | 10-K |
| 2007-07-28 | 61,535 | 2007-09-18 | 10-K |
| 2006-07-29 | 49,926 | 2006-09-18 | 10-K |
| 2005-07-30 | 38,413 | 2005-09-19 | 10-K |
| 2004-07-31 | 34,000 | 2004-09-20 | 10-K |
| 2003-07-26 | 34,000 | 2003-09-10 | 10-K |
| 2002-07-27 | 36,000 | 2002-09-18 | 10-K |
| 2001-07-28 | 38,000 | 2001-09-24 | 10-K |
| 2000-07-29 | 34,000 | 2000-09-29 | 10-K |
| 1999-07-31 | 21,000 | 1999-09-28 | 10-K405 |
| 1998-07-25 | 15,000 | 1998-09-25 | 10-K |
| 1997-07-26 | 11,000 | 1997-10-22 | 10-K |
| 1996-07-28 | 8,782 | 1996-10-25 | 10-K |
| 1995-10-26 | 4,086 | 1995-10-26 | 10-K |
Limits of this reading
- The filing counts no people by segment; the pattern shares rest on segment revenue and description (c).
- The U.S. share is not stated.
Source: the company's annual report on EDGAR, accession 0000858877-26-000132, the filing. Read by Claude Fable 5.1 under rubric version 1, by the method. A company can write to info@stratussc.com to have its reading checked against its filing.
Questions about this company
- How much of Cisco Systems, Inc.'s working time is within reach of AI?
- An estimated 21% now and 58% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five, from the workforce Cisco Systems, Inc.'s own annual report describes and BLS staffing patterns for its industries, never from a roster. It is an estimate with a stated method. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings, and it says nothing about what the company will do.
- How many people does Cisco Systems, Inc. employ?
- 82,400 as of July 25, 2026, as its annual report for the period ending July 25, 2026 states.
- What kinds of work make up Cisco Systems, Inc.'s workforce?
- Read from its annual report as a blend of 3 industry staffing patterns, the largest Communications Equipment Manufacturing; by those patterns the work is about 64% desk work, 20% people work and 16% body work. Each share has a one-sentence reason on this page that can be checked against the filing.
- What does Cisco Systems, Inc.'s annual report say about AI?
- 79 sentences in the filing name AI. They are counted and quoted on this page, never judged: a count says how much a filing talks about AI, not what the company does with it.
- How is this estimated?
- Claude Fable 5.1 read the annual report under the Index's written rubric (version 1) on October 1, 2026: the stated headcount, the share in the U.S. when stated, and the workforce as a blend of industry staffing patterns. The estimates are the site's industry estimates weighted by those shares, from O*NET tasks with estimated lengths and METR's measurements of how long a task AI models can finish. A company can write to info@stratussc.com to have its reading checked against its filing.
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.