Intel CEO Gelsinger says he respects ‘skepticism’ from investors as chipmaker’s struggles persist

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said on Thursday that it’s been a “difficult few weeks” since the chipmaker’s disastrous earnings report and the company is working hard to address investor concerns.

“We respect some of the skepticism we’ve received from the market,” Gelsinger said in a fireside chat at Deutsche Bank’s technology conference in Dana Point, California. “We believe we’re up for the challenge.”

Intel’s stock price plunged 26% following the company’s quarterly earnings report earlier this month, its worst day on Wall Street in over 50 years. The shares are down 59% this year, trading near their lowest in more than a decade.

The company has been under tremendous pressure in the last few years, as it continues spend billions of dollars building out a chip fabrication business while bleeding market share in its core PC and data center business and failing to make meaningful headway in artificial intelligence.

Gelsinger said on Thursday that the company continues to grapple with AI-driven weakness in its server business. But he expressed optimism about the future.

“We see the finish line in sight,” Gelsinger said.

He added that the company would soon launch Lunar Lake, which he called “the most compelling AI PC product ever.” Intel shares rose more than 4% on Thursday, rallying alongside the broader tech sector.

The company has engaged advisors including Morgan Stanley to help it fend off activist investor scrutiny, CNBC reported on Friday. Gelsinger didn’t address the activist issue or the sudden departure last week of industry veteran Lip-Bu Tan from Intel’s board. Reuters reported that Tan was in sharp disagreement with other directors on the steps the company needed to take.

Gelsinger acknowledged that Intel shareholders are justifiably unhappy with the company’s performance. Intel announced earlier this month, on the day of its earnings report, that it was laying of 15,000 employees and would explore cuts in its portfolio. Gelsinger said he believed those efforts would pay off, and pointed to “signals” from external foundry customers in the pipeline.

In the latest quarter, Intel swung to a $1.61 billion net loss after reporting net income of $1.48 billion in the year-earlier period, and revenue missed estimates.

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