The recent meeting between Donald Trump and Intel's CEO Lip-Bu Tan attracted attention after sharp criticism of the company leader and calls for his resignation.
Introduction
U.S. President Donald Trump met with Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan at the White House on Monday. This conversation took place less than a week after Trump called for Tan to resign. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also participated in the discussion.
Shift in Tone Regarding Lip-Bu Tan
During the meeting, Trump described the conversation as ‘very interesting’ and remarked that Tan’s career path was ‘an amazing story’. Notably, this marked a clear change in Trump's approach to Tan, who became Intel’s CEO in March 2023.
Trump's Semiconductor Strategy
The meeting occurred against the backdrop of Trump's administration being heavily engaged in semiconductor policy, as the U.S. seeks to maintain its leadership amid competition with China in artificial intelligence. Just days before meeting Tan, Trump also negotiated with Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang, resulting in Nvidia agreeing to give the federal government a 15% cut of sales from its H20 chip in China.
The meeting between Trump and Tan may symbolize a new direction in U.S. policy regarding technology and investments in the semiconductor industry, which is becoming increasingly important amid global competition.
