Lip-Bu Tan, recently appointed as the CEO of Intel, is facing growing pressure and skepticism over his extensive financial involvement in Chinese technology companies — some with known ties to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). As the head of the only U.S.-based company capable of producing the most advanced semiconductors for the Department of Defense, Tan’s deep business connections in China are being called a national security concern.
Who is Lip-Bu Tan?
Lip-Bu Tan is a prominent figure in Silicon Valley with a long and influential career. He was born in Malaysia and later came to the United States to study. He earned a master’s degree in nuclear engineering from MIT and an MBA from the University of San Francisco. Over the decades, he built a reputation as a savvy investor and a respected executive in the technology sector.
Tan founded Walden International, a venture capital firm based in San Francisco, in 1987. He also served as the CEO and executive chairman of Cadence Design Systems, a leading electronic design automation company. His background includes decades of experience investing in semiconductor firms, both in the U.S. and Asia. He was seen by some as a strong choice to revitalize Intel, which has struggled in recent years to compete with rivals like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and Samsung Electronics.
“He was at the top of my list and most investor’s lists of who they wanted,” said Bernstein analyst Stacey Rasgon. “He’s a legend and he’s been around forever.”
How Did He Become Intel’s CEO?
Tan was appointed CEO of Intel in March 2025 after serving on the company’s board of directors. His appointment was initially praised by many in the investment community. Intel has been under pressure to regain its position as a leader in advanced chip manufacturing. The company plays a critical role in U.S. national security infrastructure and has a $3 billion contract with the Department of Defense, along with two other partnerships to develop defense-grade chips.
Tan’s reputation as a global investor and technology executive seemed to align with Intel’s ambitions to become more competitive and innovative. However, that optimism quickly began to fade as details of his past investments became public.
Deep Financial Ties to Chinese Companies
According to a detailed investigation by Reuters, Tan has made hundreds of millions of dollars in investments in Chinese technology firms. Through Walden International, along with two Hong Kong-based holding companies, Sakarya Limited and Seine Limited, Tan has direct control over more than 40 Chinese entities. He also holds minority stakes in over 600 other companies. In many cases, these stakes are co-held with Chinese state-owned enterprises or municipal investment funds.
From 2012 to 2024, Reuters reported that Tan invested at least $200 million into Chinese chip and advanced manufacturing firms. At least eight of those companies are tied to the People’s Liberation Army. These firms supply hardware and technology to China’s military and surveillance programs.
Among the most controversial of Tan’s investments was in Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), China’s largest chip foundry, which was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2020 for supporting China’s military development. Tan served on SMIC’s board until 2018, and Walden reportedly exited its investment in the company in January 2021. SMIC is now on the U.S. Commerce Department’s Entity List.
Tan’s firm also invested in IntelliFusion, a company developing facial recognition systems for surveillance in China, including in the Xinjiang region where human rights violations have been widely reported. IntelliFusion is on the U.S. trade blacklist.
Additionally, Walden International has co-invested in six Chinese firms alongside China Electronics Corporation (CEC), a leading defense contractor sanctioned by the Trump administration in 2020. CEC is banned under a U.S. executive order that prohibits American investment in companies tied to China’s military-industrial complex.
In 2024, the U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party issued a report highlighting Walden’s activities. The committee stated that Walden invested $161 million in companies with military links between 2001 and 2022. The committee’s leadership, Representative Mike Gallagher and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, wrote to Tan expressing “serious concern” over his firm’s funding of quantum computing and semiconductor ventures in China. They warned that such investments could help “support the People’s Liberation Army.”
Intel and National Security Concerns
Intel is not just another private company. It is the only American firm capable of producing the most advanced chips used in military systems, intelligence networks, and high-performance computing. Given Intel’s strategic importance, some critics believe Tan’s leadership creates a dangerous conflict of interest.
“The simple fact is that Mr. Tan is unqualified to serve as the head of any company competing against China, let alone one with actual intelligence and national security ramifications like Intel,” said Andrew King, a partner at venture capital firm Bastille Ventures. “Intel and its tremendous legacy connections to all areas of America’s intelligence and defense ecosystem demand a higher level of scrutiny.”
Stephen Diamond, a law professor at Santa Clara University, said, “In this political climate, (China ties) would be something that responsible business leadership at a company like Intel would at least have a serious conversation about how to try and manage. It’s obviously politically sensitive and the board would certainly want to know about it.”
Has He Divested?
An Intel spokesperson told Reuters that Tan completed a required disclosure questionnaire as part of his appointment and that any potential conflicts of interest would be addressed in accordance with SEC rules. A source familiar with the situation said Tan had divested from his positions in Chinese entities, but Reuters was unable to verify that claim. Many of his stakes are still listed as active in Chinese business registries.
It is not illegal for American citizens to invest in Chinese companies unless those companies appear on certain U.S. government blacklists. However, ethics experts warn that the issue isn’t just legal—it’s strategic.
“The only point at which a corporate governance issue might rise is if Tan found himself on both sides of a transaction,” said Professor Diamond. “Where Intel might be negotiating with a company where he is a director or shareholder.”
It remains to be seen how Intel’s board or the U.S. government will respond to these revelations. Some lawmakers may push for new legislation limiting investment in foreign companies tied to adversarial governments. Intel’s leadership may also face pressure from shareholders or regulators to clarify Tan’s remaining financial interests in China.
Meanwhile, Tan’s supporters argue that his knowledge of the global chip industry could help Intel regain its footing. They point to other examples, such as Elon Musk, who operates Tesla’s largest factory in China while serving as a key advisor to President Donald Trump.
Still, the stakes are higher at Intel. The company is not only building chips for smartphones or computers—it is supplying the U.S. military with some of the most sophisticated hardware on the planet.
As tensions between the U.S. and China continue to rise, Tan’s past investments are not likely to fade from public attention. Whether he can navigate the controversy and continue leading Intel remains an open question. For now, his appointment has exposed just how deeply American capital is tied to China’s technology and defense industries—and that reality may be difficult to unwind.
