Intel’s new CEO Pat Kissinger takes office on February 15

At noon on February 15, it was reported that, according to the previous announcement, from February 15, Intel’s former general, Pat Gelsinger, will succeed his predecessor Swan as the company’s CEO. Help Intel find its way into the future.

Intel’s management is said to have considered quitting chip manufacturing and outsourcing manufacturing to Asian rivals (especially TSMC). However, after the announcement of the change of CEO, Kissinger said that he will not shrink the manufacturing business, but will restore its glory and let Intel regain its leadership.

Kissinger, who joined Intel at the age of 18, told company employees last month that his dream was to one day be Intel’s CEO, and now it has come true. However, he faces serious challenges today.

　　question

For the past decade, Kissinger served as CEO of VMWare, a Silicon Valley-based cloud computing company. The company’s sales soared 134% during Kissinger’s tenure, but there’s a good reason for that: cloud computing is a fast-growing industry. At this company, he did not face the challenges Intel faces today.

During Kissinger’s departure from Intel, Intel suffered a series of setbacks, including the failure of its Hillsboro R&D plant and manufacturing issues that affected the release of three generations of processors, giving Asian rivals a head start.

Intel’s sales are healthy, but the future is illusory. If the company cannot regain its technological advantage, it may become a “student with the prince” in the semiconductor industry, and can only produce backward chips and face a decline in profits and market share.

Investors and analysts are asking Intel to sell its chip factories and outsource manufacturing. But Kissinger said his mission to return to Intel was not to dismantle the company. It sounds like Kissinger is still going the same way as his predecessor, Swan.

As semiconductor line widths shrink (the industry has advanced to 5nm, 3nm, etc.), chip manufacturing becomes increasingly difficult. Unfortunately, Intel didn’t foresee trouble with its manufacturing business. At the same time, Intel’s competitors have not encountered similar problems.

It is recognized by the industry that the chip manufacturing technology of foundry companies such as TSMC and Samsung Electronics has already led Intel. Because they provide foundry business, this means that Intel competitors such as AMD can use more advanced semiconductor technology than Intel.

Some established customers have jumped ship. Apple, which has long used Intel processors in its computers, has begun using its own designs. According to industry reviews, Apple’s computers based on its own M1 processor have outperformed versions using Intel processors.

What’s more worrying is that companies with large data centers such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft may, like Apple, use processors of their own designs, which will hurt Intel’s fast-growing data center chip business.

Investors and Wall Street analysts were thrilled last year after Intel said it might outsource manufacturing in order to meet a 2023 launch target after a setback for its 7-nanometer processors. But Kissinger quickly dismissed the possibility, expressing confidence that the company will produce most of its chips in-house by 2023.

Wall Street is apprehensive, but is willing to give Kissinger time to change. Since Intel announced the change of CEO in January, the company’s stock price has risen by 20%.

　　old general

Glenn Hinton, a chip architect at Intel’s Oregon plant, had previously retired but was hired back last year to help with a special project. Hilton’s workload was reduced through January, but Intel still expects him to continue working full-time.

Hilton was a little hesitant, not too familiar with the executives who now run the company or where Intel is going. But one day, he woke up to hear that Kissinger was returning to Intel.

Hilton said: “When I saw the news of Kissinger’s return, my worries were all gone.” He quickly called the Intel department and expressed his willingness to accept the position and continue to serve.

Hilton said that he recently talked to Kissinger a few times and felt that he was optimistic and excited. “I think he realizes the huge challenge that he faces, and he wants to do everything he can to get Intel back to the best shape.”

In recent years, Intel has frequently recruited technical talents from external companies (such as Qualcomm, AMD, etc.) to revive the strength of the technology department, but these foreign executives have not received miraculous results. “A lot of[external]executives don’t know much about computers, but Kissinger is smart, he’s good at leading an organization, and he’s very knowledgeable about technology,” Hilton said.

Kissinger, who had already used a phone call ahead of his appointment as CEO on Feb. 15, invited former Intel executives to join his team.

In addition to Hilton, Intel has announced that former vice president Sunil Shenoy will return to the company as head of Intel’s engineering design group in Oregon.

Kissinger told the media in January that he will see more former Intel executives rejoin in the future, and he promised to build the corporate culture of his mentor, Intel’s legendary former CEO Grove, that is crazy execution, transparency data-based culture.

According to friends’ descriptions, Kissinger’s personality is direct, open and transparent. He was tough on his subordinates, but he didn’t have the sharpness and so-called “constructive confrontation” that Grove had at Intel.

Kissinger recently told analysts: “Excellent companies can emerge from the downturn of difficult challenges and become stronger, better and better again. I believe this is an opportunity for Intel, and I believe Intel will have a better future. “