The United States government is making an $8.9 billion investment in Intel, representing a 9.9 percent stake in the company, according to a press release the company published on Friday.
The investment will be funded by $5.7 billion in grants Intel was awarded under the 2022 CHIPS Act and $3.2 billion the company was awarded as part of the Secure Enclave program, the press release says.
The news comes shortly after President Trump touted the deal in a White House press conference with reporters. “I said, ‘I think you should pay us 10 percent of your company.’ And they said yes—that’s about $10 billion,” Trump said. “And I think it’s a great deal for them.”
Trump added that Intel’s CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, “walked in wanting to keep his job” and “ended up giving us $10 billion for the United States.” He was seemingly referring to a situation earlier this month where he called for Tan’s resignation due to the CEO’s reported financial ties to China. Trump later softened his stance after meeting with Tan in Washington.
Both Trump and US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick have said the deal is meant to revitalize the struggling chip giant and bring more chipmaking back to the United States. The move is part of a broader strategy to lessen the country’s reliance on China.
Brian Quinn, a professor at Boston College Law School, says it’s confounding that the government has negotiated for common stock in Intel, as opposed to preferred stock.
“It strikes me as a colossal waste of time,” he said. “The government said that it wanted to ensure that taxpayers get something back from this, but it’s unclear how this investment will do that. If it was preferred shares, it could have included mandatory dividends and ensured that the government gets paid back.”
While public-private sector partnerships are not entirely uncommon in the US, legal experts say this type of government intervention is unusual.
“The reason the government injected capital into the auto industry and insurers [post-2008] was to get them through the crisis,” says Timothy Meyer, a professor in international business law at Duke University. “This is not a broader financial crisis situation. This is a company that dramatically needs to boost its market share.”
Meyer added that he’s interested to see “to what extent the US government will use its leverage across the tech industry to shift purchase orders to Intel.”
When asked for comment, the White House referred WIRED to President Trump’s Truth Social account. “The United States paid nothing for these Shares, and the Shares are now valued at approximately $11 Billion Dollars. This is a great Deal for America and, also, a great Deal for INTEL,” Trump posted. “Building leading edge Semiconductors and Chips, which is what INTEL does, is fundamental to the future of our Nation. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
