The Trump administration is reportedly considering having the US government take a stake in Intel, a company that was once one of America’s most important tech giants but which has since fallen on hard times.
Following a meeting between President Donald Trump and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan this week, Bloomberg reported on Thursday that the two sides are discussing an unusual deal in which the government would pay for a stake in the company. The specifics are reportedly still being worked out.
The agreement could bolster the struggling chipmaker, which has fallen behind rivals after missing key technology waves. The White House also wants to help Intel follow through on plans to open a new US manufacturing facility in Ohio, which has been repeatedly delayed, according to Bloomberg. Intel shares (INTC) rose more than 7% on Thursday, jumping in late-day trading following Bloomberg’s report about the talks.
It’s unclear when or if such a deal might be inked. But if it were to happen, it could also serve as a model for other investments by the Trump administration, which has been weighing opportunities to take similar stakes in various US companies in critical industries, two people familiar with the White House discussions on the matter told CNN. Trump has been pushing to increase domestic manufacturing, especially of key tech products and components such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence data centers.
“Discussion about hypothetical deals should be regarded as speculation unless officially announced by the Administration,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement to CNN.
An Intel spokesperson declined to comment on the Bloomberg report but said the company “is deeply committed to supporting President Trump’s efforts to strengthen U.S. technology and manufacturing leadership.”
“We look forward to continuing our work with the Trump Administration to advance these shared priorities, but we are not going to comment on rumors or speculation,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Tan met with Trump on Monday after the president called for his immediate resignation following reports and allegations that he has ties to China. Trump later called the meeting “very interesting” and said Tan’s “success and rise is an amazing story.” The president added that he expected Intel and his cabinet members to bring him “suggestions” in the coming days.
Intel called the meeting “candid and constructive” and reiterated its commitment to “strengthening U.S. technology and manufacturing leadership.”
The people familiar with the discussions said Intel approached the meeting with the intent to discuss a wide range of potential investment or partnerships proposals. That presented an opportunity for Trump, emboldened after a series of unique investment partnerships between his administration and corporate America, the people said. The two sides agreed to continue conversations geared toward an agreement in the days following the meeting.
Tan took over Intel in March and has been attempting to turn around the beleaguered company. Intel said last month that it had mostly completed plans to lay off 15% of its staff as part of Tan’s efforts to right the ship.
A White House-Intel deal wouldn’t be the first unusual arrangement the Trump administration has come to with an American firm in recent weeks.
Last month, American rare-earth materials company MP Materials announced a multibillion-dollar package of investments and long-term purchase commitments from the US Department of Defense that it said would help it build a new US magnet manufacturing plant and expand existing facilities.
And US chipmakers AMD and Nvidia this week agreed to pay the US government 15% of their revenues from semiconductor sales to China in exchange for licenses to restart exports there, following meetings between Trump and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.