Intel's former CEO Pat Gelsinger has come out to the public to discuss his resignation for the first time, claiming that the decision was made without his willingness to step down.
Intel's Former CEO Pat Gelsinger Says He Couldn't Complete His Ambitions For Intel Foundry & His "Iconic" IDM 2.0 Strategy
Intel's Pat Gelsinger was a notable figure in the industry since he held his position as Team Blue's CEO for more than four years. Gelsinger is known for various projects, but one of the more significant ones is his "IDM 2.0" strategy, which, in simple words, was an idea to change Intel's chip manufacturing approach by involving both internal and external means of foundry usage. Based on Gelsinger's projections, when the strategy was announced, it was claimed that Intel Foundry would ultimately meet industry competition from the likes of TSMC by the next decade; however, it seems like Gelsinger ran out of time.
In a report by PC Watch, Intel's former CEO was spotted at the Playground Global conference in Tokyo, Japan, where he was asked why he stepped down from his CEO position at Intel. Here's what Gelsinger had to say:
The decision to step down from Intel was an extremely difficult one. I wanted to finish what I started, but as you know, I was not given the opportunity.
- Intel's ex-CEO
The report claims that Gelsinger further elaborated that the resignation was a decision that was made by a "third party" for him, although he didn't refer to the actual authority, probably due to the NDA clause he is under right now. However, the report does speculate that the "third party" Gelsinger talked about is likely Intel's board of directors, and that the misalignment between them and Intel's former CEO would likely be in the situation of Intel Foundry, which we'll talk about next.
Apart from all the sluggish momentum Intel saw with its consumer business under Gelsinger, the foundry division witnessed massive losses, not just financially, but also in terms of market reputation. Under its "5N4Y" strategy, Intel put out many nodes, but many failed to grasp market attention and were limited to internal use only. Intel failed to deliver on its IDM 2.0 motive, although Gelsinger has expressed in the past that Team Blue had huge expectations for 18A, but given his oustment, Intel's former CEO won't see it being launched under his tenure.
Now, under Intel's new CEO Lip-Bu Tan, the firm is redirecting its momentum towards changes from the grassroots, which include large-scale layoffs, extended use of third-party foundries, and a shift in Intel's approach towards the foundry division. Team Blue is set to initiate mass production of its 18A process soon, and it would likely show us what Gelsinger had been working on the past few years.
About the author: Muhammad Zuhair is a hardware and technology reporter for Wccftech, specializing in the semiconductor industry and the complex interplay between technology, manufacturing, and geopolitics. His coverage focuses on the corporate strategies and technological roadmaps of industry giants like TSMC, NVIDIA, Samsung, and Intel. Zuhair's expertise lies in deconstructing complex topics such as fabrication nodes (e.g., 2nm process), the economic impact of policies like the CHIPS Act, and the strategic development of AI infrastructure from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel.
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