[News] Intel’s Executive Shake-Up Under Lip-Bu Tan: New Hires, Key Exits, and a Strategic Reset

Since Lip-Bu Tan took over as CEO, Intel has seen significant changes across its executive ranks, including several key hires and departures. According to CRN, the company’s leadership now features a mix of seasoned veterans and new faces, and the following outlines some major executive moves under Tan’s leadership over the past six months.

New Appointments Under Lip-Bu Tan

As CRN indicates, Intel announced in mid-June the hiring of veteran engineers Jean-Didier Allegrucci and Shailendra Desai to advance its AI computing efforts. The company said Allegrucci, a chip designer with 17 years at Apple, would become vice president of AI system-on-chip (SoC) engineering. Meanwhile, Desai was named vice president of AI fabric and networking, drawing on his experience leading silicon engineering for mobile SoC projects at Google.

At the same time, Intel also hired Srinivasan Iyengar, a silicon engineering leader from Cadence, to strengthen its custom chip design efforts. The report notes that Intel has been intensifying its focus on custom silicon as hyperscalers such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud increasingly rely on in-house chip designs to meet their specific performance and efficiency needs.

In early September, Intel made two additional key leadership appointments. Jim Johnson, a 40-year company veteran, was named head of the Client Computing Group, while Kevork Kechichian, a two-year Arm executive, was appointed to lead the Data Center Group. Before joining Arm in 2023, Kechichian spent three years at NXP and twelve years at Qualcomm, according to the report.

Leadership Exits and Transitions

Meanwhile, in early September, Intel announced that Michelle Johnston Holthaus, CEO of Intel Products, would step down after nearly 30 years with the company. She had assumed the products leadership role in December, following Pat Gelsinger’s reported resignation under board pressure. At that time, Holthaus and CFO David Zinsner were appointed interim co-CEOs, the report notes.

Following Holthaus’s departure, Intel has seen additional senior-level exits. According to CRN, Ronak Singhal, senior fellow and Xeon chief architect, left the company at the end of September. His departure marked the second exit from Intel’s Xeon leadership this year, following Sailesh Kottapalli, who left in January to help lead Qualcomm’s renewed server CPU initiative.

In addition, in mid-September, Christopher George, head of Intel’s U.S. government business, announced his departure effective October 1. He had led Intel Government Technologies since February last year and stepped down about a month after President Trump announced plans for the U.S. government to take nearly a 10% stake in Intel using previously awarded grant funds, the CRN report states.

Intel is also seeing departures from its Ohio One project, according to Wccftech, citing Columbus Business First. Sources say “multiple leaders” have left, including Kevin Hoggatt, a key lobbyist in securing government support for the project. The report adds that Hoggatt, who previously attended President Trump’s inauguration with interim co-CEO David Zinsner, played a central role in building Intel’s collaborative ties with the U.S. administration.

Read more

• [News] Intel’s Former Interim Co-CEO Michelle Johnston Holthaus to Depart Amid Leadership Shakeup
• [News] Intel Double Hit: Xeon CPU Chief Architect Exits, Ohio Lobbyist Out as Project Stalls

(Photo credit: Intel)