The Trump administration said Friday that it had taken a 10% stake in Intel, President Donald Trump’s latest extraordinary move to exert federal government control over private business.
In a post on X Friday afternoon, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed the arrangement, firming up Trump’s suggestion earlier in the day that a deal was imminent.
“BIG NEWS: The United States of America now owns 10% of Intel, one of our great American technology companies,” Lutnick wrote. “This historic agreement strengthens U.S. leadership in semiconductors, which will both grow our economy and help secure America’s technological edge. Thanks to Intel CEO @LipBuTan1 for striking a deal that’s fair to Intel and fair to the American People.”
No details of the arrangement were immediately available. Trump and other administration officials had suggested the U.S. should receive an ownership stake in exchange for grants Intel had received via the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act passed during President Joe Biden’s administration. Intel is valued at about $108 billion on the stock market.
An Intel spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
While the U.S. held temporary stakes in firms at the center of the 2008-2009 global financial meltdown as part of a bailout, this move is unusual since the economy is not embroiled in a crisis. Congress published a study in 2003 that examined the impact of the federal government taking direct stakes in public companies, concluding that doing so would “not offer a free lunch” and expose taxpayers to “greater risk” alongside the upside potential.
Trump continues to bulldoze through such long-held norms. It represents a departure from the free-market ethos that has long prevailed in both major U.S. political parties.
This month, Trump persuaded the chipmakers Nvidia and AMD to pay the U.S. government 15% of their revenues from some sales to China in return for securing export licenses there.
While those firms have seen their fortunes rise amid the larger artificial intelligence boom, a windfall from any of them is no sure thing. In the case of the California-based Intel, the company has struggled to keep up with rivals, with its shares down some 60% from the highs seen during the pandemic. Trump recently attacked its CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, demanding his resignation over alleged ties to China, though he appeared to back down after a face-to-face meeting with Tan.
Earlier this week, Japan’s SoftBank announced it would invest $2 billion in Intel to “deepen their commitment to investing in advanced technology and semiconductor innovation in the United States.”
