Intel’s New CEO Outlines Plan to Return Company to Greatness
On Monday, chip giant Intel’s new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, laid out in broad terms his strategy to return the company to greatness. Speaking at Intel Vision, the company’s annual event for customers and partners in Las Vegas, Tan emphasized changing Intel’s culture, promising to run the company "as a startup, on day one."
Changing Culture
Tan said the culture needs changing because Intel has lost much of its engineering focus over the years. "Intel has lost some of this talent over the years," he said. "I want to re-group the talent and attract some of the new talent. "
Building a Stronger Team
Tan recalled his affection for basketball and California’s Golden State Warriors, saying, "I love the game, how they pass the ball to the teammate to receive it — this is the kind of team I would like to build."
Addressing Past Mistakes
Tan put Intel’s problems front and center. Without enumerating the mistakes in detail, it’s well-known to investors and to the industry at large that Intel has lost an enormous amount of market share to AMD over the years and has ceded the artificial intelligence battle to Nvidia. "It has been a tough period for quite a long time for Intel," observed Tan. "It was very hard for me to watch its struggle; I simply cannot stay on the sideline knowing that I could help turn things around."
Strengthening Balance Sheet
Tan identified some more specific goals. He said the company must strengthen its balance sheet, which has seen the crumbling of profit, leading to a revoking of its dividend payout.
Refashioning Chip Architecture
More substantively, Tan spoke of a need to refashion the "architecture" of Intel’s chips. That is a term of art in the semiconductor world for the way a chip’s transistors are oriented to solve a problem. Nvidia has blown past Intel’s x86 with an architecture for its GPUs that has taken advantage of the AI era. Intel needs to "accelerate development of [a] new compute architecture platform," he said, "to adopt AI and drive significant performance and power efficiency."
Software 2.0 Mentality
Tan referred to that as a "software 2.0 mentality," informed by his years of investing in startup software companies. Before becoming a board member at Intel two years ago, a post he resigned shortly before Gelsinger’s departure, Tan had a long period as a venture capitalist and as the chief executive of software maker Cadence Design Systems.
Conclusion
In fixing what’s broken at Intel, "My motto is very simple: Under-promise and over-deliver," he said. "That has been my trademark. I will not be satisfied until we delight all of you."
FAQs
Q: What is Lip-Bu Tan’s plan to return Intel to greatness?
A: Tan’s plan involves changing Intel’s culture, refashioning its chip architecture, and strengthening its balance sheet.
Q: What is the "software 2.0 mentality" that Tan refers to?
A: The "software 2.0 mentality" is a term used to describe the need for Intel to adopt a new approach to chip design, one that is informed by its years of investing in startup software companies.
Q: What is the importance of Intel’s foundry business?
A: The foundry business is a services business built on a foundation of trust, according to Tan. It is important for Intel to learn and adapt to each customer’s unique design method and style.
