VMware, which now goes by VMware by Broadcom following the takeover, employs more than 1,000 people across the country and just last year, announced it would create 200 further jobs set to be filled by 2025. 

The company first set up in Ireland in 2005 with the establishment of its Ballincollig campus backed by the IDA and in 2022, opened its new research and development hub in Dublin.

Just one month after officially launching its R&D hub, it was reported that US-headquartered semiconductor giant, Broadcom, had entered talks to acquire VMware, with the prospective transaction labelled a "blockbuster" deal that would propel the chipmaker into a highly specialised area of software.

Shortly after, a $69bn deal was signed, one of the largest in tech history, however, it faced tough regulatory scrutiny worldwide, with the companies forced to delay the closing date three times following hostility from the Chinese government. 

China's regulatory approval came through just last week amidst ongoing tensions with the US around tougher chip export control measures, which had prompted fears that the deal could not close before its final deadline on the 26th of November.

The delays left more than 1,000 Irish staff in limbo, with many uncertain of what would happen if the deal was not closed within the deadline.

However, staff members remain fearful as just one week since the completion of the long-awaited takeover, it has been reported that Broadcom has already started cutting hundreds of jobs across the US, with the future of its Irish base - which was VMWare's third-largest location prior to the takeover - now clouded once more with uncertainty. 

The Irish Examiner has contacted Broadcom for comment.