Microsoft plans to lay off 10,000 workers, the company said Wednesday, as it looks to trim costs amid economic uncertainty and to refocus on strategic priorities, such as artificial intelligence.

The company employed about 221,000 workers as of the end of June, and the cuts amount to less than 5 percent of its global work force.

“These are the kinds of hard choices we have made throughout our 47-year history to remain a consequential company in this industry that is unforgiving to anyone who doesn’t adapt to platform shifts,” Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s chief executive, said in a message to staff.

The layoffs, which will begin on Wednesday, are the company’s largest in roughly eight years. Mr. Nadella cut about 25,000 jobs over the course of 2014 and 2015 as Microsoft abandoned its ill-fated acquisition of the mobile phone maker Nokia.