Trump demands Intel CEO ‘resign immediately’ amid alleged ties to Chinese military

President Trump called on new Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to immediately resign amid allegations of having financial ties to the Chinese military — sending shares of the struggling US chipmaker lower Thursday.

“The CEO of INTEL is highly CONFLICTED and must resign, immediately. There is no other solution to this problem,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform Thursday morning.

Intel did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

Intel shares dropped nearly 2% after the opening bell.

Tan, who was born in Malaysia and grew up in Singapore, took the helm at Intel in March after the software giant ousted Pat Gelsinger following dismal earnings and several rounds of layoffs.

Last year, the company was awarded $8.5 billion from the Biden administration’s CHIPS Act under the Secure Enclave program, a national security initiative to make secure microchips for defense and intelligence applications.

The funding was later slashed by more than $600 million to about $7.85 billion but Intel still ranks as one of the top companies receiving the most federal funding.

Trump’s call for Tan to step aside comes on the heels of a letter sent to Intel’s board on Wednesday by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) seeking information on Tan’s investments in businesses tied to the Chinese military and a criminal case involving his former employer, Cadence Design.

Cotton, the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, wrote he is concerned “about the security and integrity of Intel’s operations and its potential impact on US national security,” in the missive to Intel Chairman Frank Leary, according to a copy obtained by The Post.

A Reuters report earlier this year claimed Tan invested at least $200 million across hundreds of Chinese firms – some with links to the military and the Chinese Communist Party – between March 2012 and December 2024.

“Intel and Mr. Tan are deeply committed to the national security of the United States and the integrity of our role in the US defense ecosystem,” an Intel spokesperson told The Post on Wednesday.

Cotton argued that Intel – as a major recipient of government grants – is “required to be a responsible steward of American taxpayer dollars and to comply with applicable security regulations.”

“Mr. Tan’s associations raise questions about Intel’s ability to fulfill these obligations,” he added.

Tan’s former employer Cadence Design last week agreed to pay more than $140 million to settle charges that it sold its chips to a Chinese military institution, according to a Reuters report.

Those sales took place during Tan’s tenure as CEO from 2008 to 2021.