Intel’s New CEO Lip-Bu Tan Faces Scrutiny Over Past Investments in Chinese Tech Firms

We’re going to talk about the new CEO of Plant by Interior: Mr. Tan, not for his leadership but for his appointments in many Chinese tech companies, some of which are connected to China’s military activities, users of semiconductors, and the major chipmaker in China itself.

His investment activities in China are, therefore, a matter of recording and dating in which Tan is demonstrated as having either full or partial ownership of more than 600 Chinese businesses. The investments themselves were made for more than $200 million through companies that provided or confirmed to work with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Most of the investments were done by him through firms he manages-one being Walden International-which is the venture capital company Tan founded in 1987-and two others in Hong Kong called Sakarya Limited and Seine Limited.

Some of these firms are also part of the list prepared by the U.S. Department of Commerce-known as the Entity List-where firms are grouped with others suspected of association with China’s military or intelligence services.

https://x.com/tomshardware/status/1910372100231356695

Prominent names on this investment blacklist include:

• The largest chip Designer and manufacturer of China (Walden exited the investment in this company in 2021).

• Dapu Technologies, known as a PLA contractor.

• HAI Robotics worked with Chinese surveillance companies and was seeking a PLA contract.

• Intellifusion for building surveillance systems.

• QST Group supplies sensors that are used in Russian military drones.

• Wuxi Xinxiang Information Technology Co. supplies Chinese memory chipmaker YMTC.

• Though such investments are not illegal under U.S. law, except for those blacklisted specifically, ethical doubts grow, especially given Intel’s closeness on one hand and the U.S. defense sector on the other hand.

Industry onlookers find it utterly strange that just a handful of years before, the CEO of Intel, with the chip manufacturing now in his purview, was invested in SMIC, Intel’s rival in chip manufacturing.

While these investments may not necessarily jeopardize Intel’s business, the alleged connections to China’s military institutions have raised red flags among various government and technology stakeholders. Keeping a keen eye on Tan’s actions regarding these controversies will provide deep insight into how they might impact Intel’s future alliances and relationships in the area of national security.