US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced the Trump administration's plan on August 19, 2025. The government intends to convert federal funding pledged to Intel under the CHIPS Act into an equity stake. According to Bloomberg, the planned 10% stake would make the US government Intel's largest shareholder. The chipmaker recently received a $2 billion investment from Japan's SoftBank Group. This investment represents approximately 2% stake and has made SoftBank the fifth-biggest shareholder according to FactSet data.
Intel finalized a nearly $8 billion grant in the fall of 2024 under the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 to build its factories. Under the same legislation, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) was awarded $6.6 billion to boost chip fabrication at its Arizona facilities. On CNBC's Squawk on the Street Lutnick emphasized his position that the american people should get an equity stake for their money. The secretary made it clear that the arrangement wouldn't provide the government with voting or governance rights in Intel, and that the plan is to simply convert what was a grant under Biden into equity for the Trump administration and the American people - Lutnick added. He also indicated that the president could seek similar deals with other CHIPS recipients.
Intel is currently going through challenging times. In July 2025, the company announced it was slowing down the construction of its Ohio factory complex, previously called the Silicon Valley Heartland The first factory is now scheduled to start operations in 2030. Lip-Bu Tan who was appointed as Intel's CEO in March 2025 - after his predecessor Pat Gelsinger was ousted in December 2024 - met with Trump at the White House last week. This meeting occurred after the president had previously called for his resignation, alleging ties to China. Intel's shares climbed nearly 7% on August 19, 2025, closing at $25.31.
Sources:
Annie Palmer,Chris Eudaily
