The U.S. government will take a 10% equity stake in Intel, President Donald Trump said Friday, confirming a deal that sent the chipmaker’s stock soaring more than 7%. Bloomberg first reported the news. Intel declined to comment.
The development comes as Intel undergoes a major restructuring under CEO Lip-Bu Tan, who is cutting divisions and jobs to sharpen the company’s focus and compete with rivals like Nvidia. Earlier this month, Trump had urged Tan to resign over potential conflicts of interest, though the two later met to repair relations.
Trump described the agreement as mutually beneficial:
“I think it would be good having the United States as your partner,” he told reporters, adding that Intel executives had agreed to the plan.
Such direct federal ownership would represent a sharp departure from U.S. policy, where equity stakes in private corporations are extremely rare outside of crises. The last major example came during the 2008 financial crisis, when the government temporarily held stakes in General Motors, AIG, and several banks.
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The Intel deal follows news that Japan’s SoftBank will invest $2 billion in the chipmaker, purchasing shares at $23 each. By Friday afternoon, Intel shares were trading around $25.
If finalized, the U.S. stake in Intel would underscore Washington’s heightened focus on semiconductor security and competitiveness in the global AI and chip race.
