(Photo by Andrej Sokolow/picture alliance via Getty Images)
UPDATE 8/12: Days after demanding Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan’s resignation, President Trump has reversed course following a White House meeting. “The meeting was a very interesting one. His success and rise is an amazing story,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
Original Story:
President Trump is suddenly demanding the ouster of Intel’s new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, amid concerns about his ties to China.
“The CEO of INTEL is highly CONFLICTED and must resign, immediately,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Thursday morning. “There is no other solution to this problem. Thank you for your attention to this problem!”
Trump didn’t elaborate. But the post comes a day after Sen. Tom Cotton sent a letter to Intel’s board chairman, questioning Tan’s reported investments in numerous Chinese companies, including some tied to the country’s military. Last month, Tan’s former company, where he served as CEO, Cadence Design Systems, pleaded guilty to illegally exporting sensitive design automation technology to China.
But while Sen. Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, had only called for Intel to be transparent about Tan’s Chinese investments and his past at Cadence, Trump has escalated the pressure, demanding Tan’s resignation just months after he was named CEO.
The president's post also comes a day after he mentioned his frustration with the US losing its semiconductor leadership to Taiwan’s TSMC. "When you look at the chip business, it would have never left our shores," he said. "We had...100% of chips originally, then we got slowly taken down to nothing." Trump then teased a 100% tariff on foreign chips.
But in response to Trump's demand, Intel has published a statement that says: "Intel, the Board of Directors, and Lip-Bu Tan are deeply committed to advancing US national and economic security interests and are making significant investments aligned with the President's America First agenda."
"Intel has been manufacturing in America for 56 years," the company added. "We are continuing to invest billions of dollars in domestic semiconductor R&D and manufacturing, including our new fab in Arizona that will run the most advanced manufacturing process technology in the country, and are the only company investing in leading logic process node development in the US. We look forward to our continued engagement with the Administration."
If Tan is forced out, it would mark another setback for Intel as it struggles to turn itself around. The company has already laid off thousands of employees while its new CEO cuts costs and streamlines operations. The US chipmaker is trying to bolster sales by developing new chip manufacturing processes. But a Reuters report alleges the company’s upcoming 18A process suffers from low production yields, eroding its ability to generate profit.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with Intel's comment.