Trump says Intel agreed to give US government 10% equity stake in $10 billion deal

President Donald Trump said Intel Corp. has agreed to hand the US government a ten per cent equity stake, with a formal announcement expected on Friday, according to people familiar with the matter.

Hailing the deal as a “multibillion-dollar win for taxpayers” and a turning point for the struggling chipmaker, Trump said the partial ownership marked a new era in how Washington supports critical industries.

The move would represent an extraordinary level of intervention in an American company, breaking with long-held norms that such measures are usually reserved for times of war or systemic financial crisis. Intel declined to comment on the timing of the announcement. Shares in the company rose as much as 6.6 per cent on Friday.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick underscored the shift in approach, telling CNBC earlier this week that the goal is to “get a good return for the American taxpayer instead of just giving grants away.”

Although the administration has not disclosed full details of its negotiations with Intel, a US official said companies expanding their US investments—such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Micron Technology Inc.—would not be required to offer equity in exchange for federal support.

The Intel deal underscores both risks and rewards: the possibility of heavy taxpayer losses if the investment falters, but also the chance of reviving a company that once led the chip industry and is now seen as falling behind competitors.

Trump has increasingly tied industrial policy to direct state involvement. In early August, he announced Nvidia Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. had agreed to give the government 15 per cent of revenue from AI chip sales to China. Earlier this year, he also secured a “Golden Share” from Nippon Steel Corp. in its deal for United States Steel Corp., granting him veto power over key decisions.