Amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and China, former President Donald Trump on Thursday demanded the immediate resignation of Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan, accusing him of having serious conflicts of interest, though offering no evidence.
“The CEO of INTEL is highly CONFLICTED and must resign immediately. There is no other solution to this problem. Thank you for your attention to this problem!” Trump posted on Truth Social.
The post follows a letter sent Wednesday by Senator Tom Cotton to Intel’s board, raising concerns over Tan’s alleged ties to China. Cotton cited Tan’s past leadership at Cadence Design Systems, which reportedly had connections to a Chinese military university, and questioned his investments in the region.
Tan, who became CEO in March, has been working to streamline operations at Intel as the company struggles to keep pace with AI chip leaders like Nvidia and AMD. His tenure has included mass layoffs, cancelled factory plans, and efforts to offload non-core assets.
Intel, a key beneficiary of the Biden administration’s CHIPS Act with nearly $8 billion pledged for manufacturing across several states, has not publicly responded to the allegations or Trump’s statement.
