Intel’s Leadership Shake-Up: Gelsinger Steps Down After 40-Year Journey

After an epic 40-year saga with Intel, Pat Gelsinger is hanging up his cape and stepping into retirement, effective December 1. His departure marks the end of a nearly four-year tenure steering the ship at this chip manufacturing giant. With Gelsinger’s exit, both his CEO title and his seat on the board of directors have been vacated, prompting the board to roll up their sleeves and form a search committee to find a new captain for this tech vessel—one that promises to be both “diligent and expeditious” in their quest.

In the interim, the dynamic duo of Michelle Johnston Holthaus, Intel Products’ incoming CEO, and David Zinsner, the company’s executive vice president and CFO, will take the reins as Co-CEOs. Talk about a power couple!

Before donning the CEO hat at Intel, Gelsinger was busy making waves at EMC and VMWare for over a decade. He made his grand return to Intel in 2021, stepping into the role after Bob Swan’s brief leadership stint. Frank Yeary, who’s now taking on the role of interim executive chair, had some kind words for Gelsinger: “As a leader, Pat helped launch and revitalize process manufacturing by investing in state-of-the-art semiconductor manufacturing, while working tirelessly to drive innovation throughout the company.” Now that’s a legacy worth celebrating!

However, Gelsinger’s time at the helm wasn’t all smooth sailing. He navigated through some stormy waters, including significant layoffs that saw about 20 percent of staff trimmed in late 2022. Fast forward to this year, and Intel faced even more turbulence with another 15,000 roles on the chopping block—15 percent of the workforce—as part of a massive $10 billion cost-cutting initiative. Reports from Bloomberg suggest that Gelsinger’s leadership faced scrutiny, leading the board to lose confidence in his strategies. In a dramatic twist, he was presented with the choice of retiring gracefully or being pushed out the door—leading to his sudden exit.

As the tech world watches and waits, the future of Intel hangs in the balance. Will the next leader steer the company back to its former glory? Only time will tell.

Update, December 2, 2024, 11:26 AM ET: This story now includes additional reporting from Bloomberg.