The Trump administration is discussing a plan to buy about 10 percent of Intel Corp., which would make the US government the chipmaker’s largest shareholder, according to people familiar with the talks.
The idea is to turn some or all of Intel’s promised Chips and Science Act grants into government-owned shares. Intel has been approved for $10.9 billion in grants and can also access up to $11 billion in loans under the 2022 law. At today’s stock value, a 10 percent stake in Intel would be worth about $10.5 billion.
So far, no final decision has been made. White House officials and the Commerce Department, which manages the Chips Act, declined to comment on details. Intel also has not responded.
Recently, SoftBank announced a $2 billion investment in Intel, showing its confidence in the US chipmaker. After reports of the government’s possible investment, Intel’s stock price jumped, then fell briefly, before rising again after the SoftBank deal.
Intel has been struggling with falling sales and heavy losses. The company has also lost its lead in chip technology to TSMC (Taiwan) and Samsung (South Korea). New CEO Lip-Bu Tan has been cutting costs and jobs but says Intel will expand factories only when customers commit to using its advanced chip technology.
A big focus for the White House is Intel’s massive but delayed Ohio factory project, seen as vital for making advanced chips in the US.
The Trump administration is also considering whether other Chips Act grants could be turned into government stakes in different companies.
Most of the Chips Act funding was already allocated under President Biden. Intel has received $2.2 billion so far, but it’s unclear if that amount would count toward a potential equity deal.
President Trump met Intel’s CEO last week, softening his earlier criticism of Tan’s ties to China. Officials are looking at ways to strengthen Intel so the US can compete with Asian chipmakers. Previous ideas included partnerships with AMD, Nvidia, TSMC, or even foreign investors like the UAE, but none of those have advanced.
If the government goes ahead, it would continue a trend of Washington taking bigger roles in strategic industries. Recently, the Pentagon also bought a 15 percent stake in MP Materials, a US rare-earth producer, showing how serious the government is about securing supply chains for critical technologies.
