Nokia recruits Intel’s AI boss as CEO

Business news | February 11, 2025

By Peter Clarke

Wireless Communications Analog Artificial Intelligence

Telecommunications infrastructure company Nokia Oy (Espoo, Finland) has appointed Justin Hotard, currently head of the Data Center and AI Group at Intel to succeed Pekka Lundmark as CEO.

Hotard will be based at Nokia’s headquarters in Espoo, Finland, and take over as CEO on April 1, 2025.

Hotard has not been long at Intel having joined as executive vice president and general manager of the Data Center & AI Business Group in February 2024. However, he has 25 years of electronics and semiconductor business experience and prior to joining Intel spent eight years with Hewlett Packard Enterprise and ended up responsible for the high performance computing and AI business unit and HPE Labs.

“I am delighted to welcome Justin to Nokia. He has a strong track record of accelerating growth in technology companies along with vast expertise in AI and data center markets, which are critical areas for Nokia’s future growth,” said Sari Baldauf, chair of Nokia’s board, in a statement.

“This is the right time for me to move on. I have led listed companies for more than two decades and although I do not plan to stop working, I want to move on from executive roles to work in a different capacity, such as a board professional,” said Lundmark, in the same statement.

Lundmark is set to step down as CEO on 31 March 2025 but will continue as an advisor to the CEO until the end of the year.