In a rare collective statement provided exclusively to Fortune, the former directors said the fate of CEO Lip-Bu Tan should be decided by Intel shareholders and Intel’s board, but called for a radical restructuring that would spin off Intel’s manufacturing arm into an independent company to secure America’s chipmaking dominance.
The group called for Intel shareholders to insist on the split, which would create a new, independent manufacturing entity, with its own CEO and board. To make the new manufacturing company competitive with TSMC, the former directors called for remaining funds under the CHIPS Act to go towards supporting the company and to help “persuade American design firms to place orders.” That would position the new company to be able to to provide an alternative to TSMC, “both for cutting edge chips needed for data center and other commercial purposes and for national security requirements.”
In his note to staff on Thursday, Tan defended his integrity and claimed the current board was “fully supportive” of the work currently under way at Intel, while insisting that throughout his four decades in the industry, he has “always operated within the highest legal and ethical standards.”
Intel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a previous statement to Fortune, however, the company pushed back on criticism, saying its board and CEO Lip-Bu Tan are “deeply committed to advancing U.S. national and economic security interests” and were making “significant investments aligned with the President’s America First agenda.”
Intel noted it has been manufacturing in the U.S. for 56 years and is investing billions of dollars in domestic semiconductor R&D and manufacturing, including a new Arizona fab that will run the most advanced process technology in the country. The company added that it was “the only company investing in leading logic process node development in the U.S.” and said it looked forward to “continued engagement with the Administration.”
Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that the four former directors called for the ouster of Intel’s CEO. The group of former directors said that Intel shareholders should make the decision about the CEO.
