An downed Silicon Valley icon seeking to restore its reputation as America's most well-known semiconductor company, Intel has appointed experienced business and technology leader Lip Butane as its new CEO.
Mr. Tan, 65, is responsible for reviving the fate of a chip manufacturer that has fallen from bounty. Once one of the most famous names in technology, the semiconductor giant has been hampered in recent years by struggling to innovate and bill the market share of chips used in smartphones and artificial intelligence.
Intel's issues have become so pronounced that last year it drove CEO Patrick Gelsinger, cutting 15,000 jobs. The company's stock price has fallen 54% over the past year.
The company's disaster is being wary of the US government, and lawmakers are trying to rebuild the chip industry after the pandemic created a global shortage that forced US automotive factories to shutter. Under the Chips Act, a bipartisan law, Intel was awarded $8.5 billion in federal funds to build factories in Arizona, Ohio and New Mexico. But its business challenges raise questions about its ability to complete these projects.
This year, the Trump administration began meeting with Intel's leadership on how to restore operations, one of the last countries in advanced semiconductor manufacturing. One proposal was to have a rival Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer, the world's largest chip manufacturer. Inter chairman Frank Inai was open to that idea, the New York Times reported.
Now, it's up to Tan to lead Inter's future. The company is one of the last in the world that designs and manufactures semiconductors. Previous board members and other members of the industry are asking the company to split those companies.
Investors have responded positively to Tan's appointment, with Intel's stock price surged by more than 11% in aftermarket trading.
Mr. Tan has a long history as an investor in Silicon Valley. It has one of the few historys that kept money in semiconductor and high-tech hardware startups when most other venture capitalists chose to invest less risky in software and internet services. While running Venture Capital Firm Walden International, he served as a long stint as CEO of Cadence Design Systems.
He is widely believed to have turned the company around and now boasts a market value of over $65 billion.
Mr. Tan has played an active role in many small and medium-sized high-tech hardware companies. He was appointed executive chairman of Sambanova Systems last May. This is a company that competes with Nvidia, the global developer of artificial intelligence chips. He is also chairman of Credo Technology Group Holding, a manufacturer of communication chips.
In recent years, Tang has faced criticism for Chinese investing in artificial intelligence and semiconductor companies. A China-focused parliamentary committee wrote in 2023 requesting information on Walden international investment in companies that are blacklisted by the government because they are labelled as national security risks.
