Chen Lifu had already clashed with some board members before being asked to step down by Trump

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, Chen Lifu had already been at odds with some board members before U.S. President Trump demanded that he resign.

The report cited sources who said that shortly after taking office, Chen Lifu disagreed with some directors on core issues such as whether the company should continue its manufacturing business or completely exit it; Chen Lifu's recent efforts to raise new funds and acquire an artificial intelligence company also faced resistance from directors.

Trump on Thursday posted on his social media demanding Chen Lifu's resignation, accusing him of having a conflict of interest due to his business relations with China; this has made the internal situation at Intel even more tense.

Intel currently supports Chen Lifu, stating that the company, the board, and Chen Lifu himself are committed to promoting the national and economic security interests of the United States, and have invested significant funds in Trump's "America First" policy.

In another statement to the Wall Street Journal, Intel stated that the board and management team are in agreement on the company's strategy, and "regularly and actively engage in in-depth discussions and negotiations."

Intel was once the world's most valuable semiconductor company, but failed to foresee the rise of AI, causing its market value to drop by half since early last year.

On March this year, when Intel appointed Chen Lifu as CEO, the company's stock price jumped over 13%. However, sources say that Chen Lifu immediately had differences of opinion with the independent chairman of the board, Jere, upon his appointment, and the two debated whether Intel should continue to manufacture chips for itself and its customers, or exit the manufacturing industry entirely.

Jere, who took on the role of interim CEO earlier this year, had previously devised a plan to push Intel to completely exit the foundry business.

According to sources, Chen Lifu believed that the chip foundry business is crucial to Intel's success, and it must ensure that the United States does not become overly reliant on foreign semiconductor companies such as TSMC and Samsung.

Sources revealed that Intel is also exploring the possibility of acquiring an AI company. Chen Lifu and others believe this is an opportunity to catch up with competitors such as NVIDIA and AMD. However, sources said that the board took some time to review potential transactions, while another listed tech company apparently also planned to acquire the target company.

According to sources, Chen Lifu felt constrained by the board while trying to reorganize the company.

Chen Lifu had recently made some progress with the government, and Trump's criticism came as a surprise to both him and Intel.

A source said that Chen Lifu met with Commerce Secretary Rutenberg for about an hour in April to discuss his plans to reform Intel. The two later spoke on the phone about meeting again later this month. According to sources, Rutenberg told Chen Lifu that if Intel had a feasible plan to win over major clients like Apple, the government would support it.

Another challenge for Chen Lifu, according to sources, is that the former CEO of Intel, Kirschner, had built a friendship with Vice President Vance before leaving.

Shortly after Trump and Vance won the presidential election in November 2024, Kirschner left Intel. Sources said that three months prior, Chen Lifu had abruptly left the Intel board because he disagreed with Kirschner and other directors' management ideas. A former Intel director believes that Kirschner's friendship with Vance could have connected Intel with the White House, potentially turning around the company's fate.

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1839898633878723/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.