Intel approaches Lip-Bu Tan, Marvell’s Murphy about CEO post

Business news | December 5, 2024

By Peter Clarke

Intel has approached both former board member Lip-Bu Tan and Matt Murphy, CEO of Marvell, about taking the CEO post following the departure of Pat Gelsinger earlier this week, according to Reuters.

The news agency reported that these two are among a “handful” of semiconductor industry executives who are being considered for the post.

However, speaking at a UBS financial conference, David Zinsner, CFO and an interim-CEO at Intel, has said the next CEO will have experience both in manufacturing and chip product as Intel’s core strategy remains intact. This was also reported by Reuters.

The implication is that Intel intends to stick with Gelsinger’s strategy of converting Intel manufacturing into a leading-edge foundry while it also develops processors for sale. The reason for Gelsinger’s ousting seems to have been that he did not execute well enough or quickly enough on the strategy. Intel’s share price has slumped by 55 percent during 2024 due a series of poor financial results while general market indices have been rising.

Now Gelsinger is gone, what is Intel’s Plan B?

“I’m not in the process, but I’m guessing that the CEO will have … both some capability around foundry as well as on the product side,” Reuters quoted Zinsner saying.

At the same event Naga Chandrasekaran, Intel’s head of foundry manufacturing, said Intel needs a major internal cultural change if it is to be a successful foundry. He added that Intel continues to make progress on the 18A manufacturing node.

The success of the 18A process is seen as essential to Intel being able to produce its own leading-edge chips and chiplets in 2H25 and to compete with leading foundry TSMC.

Reuters quoted Chandrasekaran saying: “There’s nothing fundamentally challenging on this node now. It is about going through the remaining yield challenges, defect density challenges.”