Intel is in trouble. Layoffs have cut deep, advanced chip projects face uncertainty, and there’s even talk of the company abandoning manufacturing altogether if it can’t secure buyers for its upcoming 14A process. In the middle of this storm, former Intel CEO Craig Barrett has a rescue plan — one that bypasses corporate restructuring and instead calls for an unprecedented alliance between Intel and its customers.
Writing in Fortune, Barrett urged U.S. tech heavyweights like Nvidia, Apple, and Google to collectively invest $40 billion into Intel in exchange for equity stakes and guaranteed access to its chips. The goal: to keep cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing on American soil and reduce reliance on foreign foundries. “Neither Samsung nor TSMC plan to bring their state-of-the-art manufacturing to the U.S. in the near term,” Barrett warned, adding that a domestic “second source” for chips is essential for pricing stability, supply security, and national defense.
Barrett’s proposal doesn’t stop there. He suggested that the U.S. government sweeten the deal — and pressure the market — by imposing steep tariffs, perhaps 50%, on imported state-of-the-art semiconductors. He likened it to past protections for steel and aluminum, arguing that microchips are just as critical to America’s future.
This vision comes as current CEO Lip-Bu Tan prepares for a high-profile meeting with former President Donald Trump, who has openly called for Tan’s resignation over his ties to Chinese firms. Meanwhile, some former Intel board members have floated a breakup of the company as the best path forward. Barrett’s response was blunt: “Be serious.”
To him, the choice is clear — act decisively to secure Intel’s future and America’s chip independence, or risk watching both slip away.