Intel appoints Lip-Bu Tan as CEO to orchestrate turnaround at struggling chipmaker, stock jumps 12%

Intel said on Wednesday that it had appointed Lip-Bu Tan as its new CEO, as the chipmaker attempts to recover from a tumultuous four-year run under Pat Gelsinger. The stock jumped 12% in extended trading.

Tan was previously CEO of Cadence Design Systems, which makes software used by all the major chip designers, including Intel. He was an Intel board member but departed last year, citing other commitments.

Tan replaces interim co-CEOs David Zinsner and MJ Holthaus, who took over in December when former Intel CEO Patrick Gelsinger was ousted. Tan is also rejoining Intel's board.

The appointment closes a chaotic chapter in Intel's history, as investors pressured the semiconductor company to cut costs and spin off businesses due to declining sales and an inability to crack the booming artificial intelligence market.

"In areas where we have momentum, we need to double down and extend our advantage," Tan said in statement on Intel's website. "In areas where we are behind the competition, we need to take calculated risks to disrupt and leapfrog. And in areas where our progress has been slower than expected, we need to find ways to pick up the pace."

Tan becomes the fourth permanent CEO at Intel in seven years. Following Brian Krzanich's resignation in 2018, after the revelations of an inappropriate relationship with an employee, Bob Swan took the helm in Jan. 2019. He departed two years later after Intel suffered numerous blows from competitors and chip delays. Swan was succeeded by Gelsinger in 2021.

Gelsinger took over with a bold plan to transform Intel's business to manufacture chips for other companies in addition to its own, becoming a foundry. But Intel's overall products revenue continued to decline, and investors fretted