In dealings that have raised conflicts of interest, Intel CEO Tan Lip-Bu has repeatedly pursued transactions with companies where he simultaneously held posts and would have profited personally had those deals materialised.
In dealings that have raised concerns about proprietary, Intel CEO Tan Lip-Bu has repeatedly pursued transactions with companies where he has simultaneously held leadership posts and would have profited had those deals materialised.
Under Tan, Intel has entered into negotiations to acquire artificial intelligence (AI) chip start-up Rivos and AI computing startup SambaNova. Tan has served as the chairman of both of these companies while also serving as the CEO of Intel — the company he pushed to buy these start-ups.
Eventually, Meta acquired Rivos for an undisclosed amount and talks with SambaNova are understood to be continuing.
Intel’s CEO’s conflict of interest raises concerns
What makes Tan’s conflict of interest really concerning is not that Intel was acquiring firms where he had been an investor personally or held simultaneous posts, but the fact that such deals would have brought him a fortune, raising questions whether he was pushing his company into deals that were actually a means for personal profiteering instead of pursuing the company’s best interests.
Reuters has reported that Intel’s board has initially rebuffed Tan’s pitch to acquire Rivos earlier this year, but that did not deter him.
Later, Tan asked one of his lieutenants at Intel to pitch a new AI plan that eventually led to partnership talks with Rivos, sources told Reuters.
But then Meta showed interest in Rivos and Intel eventually made an offer and that made Meta come up with a better offer, according to the report.
Eventually, even as Meta —not Intel— bought Rivos, Tan profited from his company’s bid as it prompted Meta to make a better offer to acquire Rivos and that generated more shareholder value for him personally.
While it could not be determined how much Tan personally profited from the affair, his venture-capital firm, Walden Catalyst, claimed he had delivered a “successful outcome” for its investors and congratulated the Rivos team for its “remarkable achievement” with the Meta acquisition.
Or is he just pursuing strategy?
On his part, Tan’s interest in Rivos and SambaNova was driven by the importance of entering AI chip business and Intel’s failure to breaking into the market on its own. While Intel was once the market leader in chips, it has lost the leadership in the AI chip domain to Nvidia.
An Intel spokesperson told Reuters that Tan was “advancing its AI strategy” and “revitalising its engineering-centric, customer-first culture”.
On his part, the rationale to buy SambaNova was that the company could provide more tech and talent to build AI chips, sources told Reuters.
“While we are always exploring strategic options, our focus remains on accelerating the roadmap, delivering products to market, and supporting our customers,” a spokesperson told the news agency.
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