Lip-Bu Tan became CEO of Intel in March. Photo by Andrej Sokolow/picture alliance via Getty Images
President Donald Trump has sharply reversed course on Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan. Just days after blasting Tan as “highly conflicted” and demanding his immediate resignation over alleged national security risks, Trump is now praising his “success and rise” following a face-to-face meeting at the White House yesterday Aug. 11.
“The meeting was a very interesting one,” said Trump in a Truth Social post. “Mr. Tan and my Cabinet members are going to spend time together, and bring suggestions to me next week.” Intel’s stock jumped more than 3 percent today on the news.
The President’s abrupt shift caps a whirlwind week for Tan. On Aug. 6, U.S. Republican Senator Tom Cotton sent Intel’s board chair a letter questioning Tan’s ties to China and his past leadership of Cadence Design Systems, which recently pled guilty to selling technology to a military-affiliated Chinese university. Within days, Trump publicly called for Tan’s ouster.
In response, Tan released a statement pushing back on what he called “misinformation” about his record. “The United States has been my home for more than 40 years. I love this country and am profoundly grateful for the opportunities it has given me.”
It’s unclear what exactly changed the President’s mind. “Mr. Tan had the honor of meeting with President Trump for a candid and constructive discussion on Intel’s commitment to strengthening U.S. technology and manufacturing leadership,” said Intel in a statement yesterday. “We appreciate the President’s strong leadership to advance these priorities and look forward to working closely with him and his Administration as we restore this great American company.”
Born in Malaysia and raised in Singapore, Tan moved to the U.S. in the 1970s to pursue a master’s degree in nuclear engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. While he has only led Intel since March, Tan he brings decades of semiconductor experience—leading Cadence between 2008 and 2021, serving on Intel’s board, and founding Walden Catalyst Ventures, an investment firm specializing in semiconductor ventures.
The bigger picture
Trump’s reversal on Tan comes as his administration wavers on tariff policy toward China. On Aug. 11, the President delayed a planned hike in U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports—postponing the jump from 30 percent to 145 percent for another 90 days. China, in turn, won’t raise its own levies on U.S. goods from 10 percent to 125 percent until mid-November.
The impact of Trump’s global levies is slowing creeping up in consumer prices. July’s inflation read came at 2.7 percent, unchanged from June. However, core CPI—which excludes volatile food and energy costs—climbed to 3.1 percent from June’s 2.9 percent.
Intel isn’t the only chipmaker drawing unusual attention from Trump this month. The President yesterday announced that Nvidia and AMD must pay the U.S. government 15 percent of their revenue from chips sold to China in order to obtain export licenses , which were paused in April.
Unlike Nvidia and AMD, which have thrived by centering their businesses on the GPUs needed to power A.I. systems, Intel has struggled to capture that momentum. The company’s stock plunged about 60 percent last year, prompting the ouster of former CEO Pat Gelsinger at the end of 2024. Now under Tan, Intel is cutting its workforce, doubling down on its foundry business, and going all-in on engineering.
