Trump says he should've asked for 'more' of Intel when negotiating stake with CEO

In a recent interview with Fortune, former U.S. President Donald Trump expressed regret over the terms of his negotiations with Intel, suggesting he should have sought a larger stake in the semiconductor giant. This discussion comes nearly nine months after the U.S. government acquired a 9.9% share in Intel. Trump recounted his exchange with Intel's CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, during which he proposed an ownership stake of "10% for free." According to Trump, Tan agreed to the deal, leading him to remark, "S---, I should have asked for more." The former president also speculated that if he had been in office to impose tariffs on foreign chip manufacturers, Intel could have dominated the market. He claimed that the company would have become the largest in the world, effectively diminishing the influence of Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer TSMC, which currently boasts a market capitalization of $1.84 trillion compared to Intel's $547 billion. In August, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed the government’s investment in Intel, which had seen its share price decline in previous years. The government’s stake was augmented by converting $5.7 billion in unallocated CHIPS Act grants and $3.2 billion from additional awards into equity. Since then, Intel's stock has surged over 300%. Moreover, recent developments indicate an emerging partnership between Apple and Intel, with reports suggesting Intel will produce chips for Apple devices. Additionally, Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, announced plans to utilize Intel chips for his ambitious $119 billion Terafab project. Trump also commented on the competitive landscape of artificial intelligence, asserting that the U.S. is significantly ahead of China. He emphasized the importance of maintaining this lead. Notably, April marked a record month for Intel on the Nasdaq, with its stock more than doubling amid a resurgence in demand for central processing units (CPUs). According to Bank of America, the CPU market is projected to more than double by 2030, as Nvidia highlighted the increasing significance of CPUs in the AI sector. Tan noted during a recent earnings call that demand for Intel’s data center CPUs currently exceeds supply, reaffirming the critical role of these processors in the evolving technology landscape.