``` Before the appointment, former SK Hynix CEO was chosen to lead the packaging business; Intel's stock price surged 10% to a record high. ```

``` Before the appointment, former SK Hynix CEO was chosen to lead the packaging business; Intel's stock price surged 10% to a record high. ```

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Intel is accelerating the restructuring of its foundry division to target the AI chip manufacturing market.

According to Reuters, the company on Thursday appointed former SK Hynix CEO Seok-Hee Lee as Executive Vice President of the foundry division, reporting directly to CEO Pat Gelsinger, and responsible for advanced packaging, system integration, and backend manufacturing. On the same day, Trump announced that Apple has agreed to collaborate with Intel to jointly design and manufacture chips in the U.S. Stimulated by this double positive news, Intel's stock price surged 10%, reaching a record high.

This appointment establishes advanced packaging as an independent operational segment with its own leadership and strategic focus, marking a key step in Intel's IDM 2.0 strategy and revival of its manufacturing business. Analysts believe that advanced packaging is a technological pillar for Intel's differentiated competition, while Apple's involvement provides a long-term demand base for the foundry business.

Personnel Appointment: Bringing in Industry Veteran to Lead Packaging Strategy

Seok-Hee Lee’s joining brings critical talent support to Intel’s foundry business. He previously served as President and CEO of SK Hynix and SK On, with extensive experience in managing large-scale technology and manufacturing organizations. Lee began his career at Intel as an engineering leader, and he refers to his return as ‘coming home’.

CEO Pat Gelsinger stated that advanced packaging and system integration are becoming core capabilities for next-generation computing systems. Lee's expertise in operational execution and technical organizational management will help Intel enhance its system integration capabilities, tightly coupling components like logic, memory, and networking to build high-performance computing systems for foundry clients.

With this adjustment, former foundry Executive Vice President Naga Chandrasekaran will continue to report to Pat Gelsinger, focusing on frontend technology development and manufacturing, especially advancing the Intel 18A, Intel 14A, and future technology ramp-ups. The clear division between frontend and backend operations provides customers with greater execution certainty. Additionally, Executive Vice President Navid Shahriari announced his retirement after a 37-year career.

Advanced Packaging: A Key Battleground in the AI Era

Intel’s decision to establish advanced packaging as an independent business segment reflects a structural trend in the semiconductor industry. As chip manufacturers enhance performance through multi-chip integration packaging, the strategic importance of advanced packaging continues to rise, particularly in AI systems and high-performance computing.

In its statement, Intel specifically mentioned two advanced packaging technologies, EMIB-T and HBI, noting that they are being driven into high-volume production. CEO Pat Gelsinger described Lee as “the right leader to build and scale this critical segment of Intel's foundry business.”

This appointment marks the latest in a series of intensive moves in Intel’s foundry business. According to Reuters, in April this year, Intel recruited Shawn Han from Samsung to help advance its contract manufacturing business; that same month, Tesla became the first major customer for its next-generation 14A manufacturing process, which is expected to go into mass production in 2029.

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