After US President Donald Trump asked Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to resign “immediately”, the head of the California-headquartered technology company has responded with a strong defense of his leadership and love for the US, his “home for 40 years”.
In an internal company memo sent hours after Trump called Tan “highly conflicted” due to his ties to Chinese firms, the CEO told his employees that he has “always operated within the highest legal and ethical standards”. Tan labelled all criticism about his China ties as “misinformation”.
Trump’s public intervention in corporate leadership had come a day after US Republican Senator Tom Cotton raised questions about Tan’s investment of at least $200 million in hundreds of China-based advanced manufacturing and chip firms, some even linked to the Chinese military, as reported exclusively by Reuters in April.
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Cotton had also sent a letter to Intel’s board chair that mentioned concerns about Tan’s involvement with Chinese firms and a recent criminal case involving his former firm, Cadence Design, where Tan was the CEO from 2009-2021.
“The CEO of INTEL is highly CONFLICTED and must resign, immediately. There is no other solution to this problem,” Trump said in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.
In his reply, Tan said he was committed to the US national security. “The United States has been my home for 40 years. I love this country and am profoundly grateful for the opportunities it has given me,” he wrote to Intel employees.
Addressing the controversy surrounding his investments in Chinese firms, some even linked to the People’s Liberation Army, he said “there has been a lot of misinformation circulating about my past roles at Walden International and Cadence Design Systems,” and added that they are “engaging with the administration to address the matters that have been raised and ensure they have the facts”.
Intel designs, manufactures, and sells computer components such as central processing units and related products for business and consumer markets.
It had secured $8 billion in CHIPS Act subsidies, the largest grant secured by a single company, making Tan’s foreign connections more sensitive for national security officials.
Acknowledging the company’s transformation under him, Tan emphasised that Intel's board remains "fully supportive" of transformation efforts.
Tan’s troubles began when Reuters had reported that the CEO invested at least $200 million in hundreds of Chinese companies between March 2012 and December 2024. His venture firm, Walden, maintained joint ownership with Chinese government funds in at least 20 investment vehicles from tech hubs like Hangzhou, Hefei and Wuxi. Eight of the companies reportedly have direct ties to the Chinese military.
Meanwhile, Cadence Design Systems, where Tan served as the CEO until 2021, pleaded guilty last month to illegally selling export-controlled technologies to a Chinese military university, and agreed to pay over $140 million in penalties for activities that occurred during his tenure.
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