Something to look forward to: Intel’s years-long struggle to stay competitive in the semiconductor market worsened last year as the company lost billions, forcing out CEO Pat Gelsinger. While the strategic direction of his successor remains unclear, early statements suggest that Intel will maintain its commitment to foundries, even as rivals propose partnerships and others question whether Intel should stay in the foundry market.

Intel’s board has appointed former Cadence CEO Lip-Bu Tan as its new leader. An industry veteran, Tan has vowed to restore the fortunes of the once-dominant chip giant.

Tan previously served as the CEO of Cadence Design Systems, a major electronic systems design company, from 2009 to 2021, and was a board member from 2004 to 2023. He will also rejoin Intel’s board of directors after stepping down last August.

Tan served as the CEO of Cadence Design Systems, a major electronic systems design company, from 2009 to 2021 and served on its board from 2004 to 2023. He will rejoin Intel’s board of directors after stepping down last August.

In a statement, Tan reaffirmed Intel’s ambition to re-establish itself as a world-class foundry, signaling that the company does not intend to abandon the business, despite losing ground to TSMC and Samsung. Former CEO Pat Gelsinger had launched an ambitious plan to close the gap with competitors but resigned suddenly last year after multiple consecutive quarters of steep losses.

Intel lost over $18 billion in 2024 – its first annual loss since 1986. Meanwhile, TSMC, which dominates the cutting-edge semiconductor market, reported an operating profit of $41 billion during the same period.

Since Intel’s struggles became apparent, various entities have proposed either buying Intel or assuming partial control over it. Recently, TSMC proposed a joint venture with Nvidia, AMD, Broadcom, and Qualcomm to help manage Intel’s foundries while keeping the majority of the company under U.S. ownership.

It remains unclear whether the Trump administration, which aims to keep Intel competitive against its Taiwan- and South Korea-based rivals, will support the deal.

Intel is pinning much of its future on its new 18A semiconductor process node, designed to compete with TSMC’s upcoming N2. With tape-outs scheduled for the first half of this year, 18A will introduce backside power delivery and a gate-all-around architecture ahead of TSMC, which plans to implement these technologies starting in 2026.

Early analysis suggests that 18A could outperform N2, but real-world comparisons will have to wait until tangible products using the two nodes emerge. Nvidia and Broadcom are currently testing 18A, though there is no evidence yet that they plan to adopt it.