According to comments made by White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett today, the U.S. federal government could take stakes in other U.S. semiconductor companies or even move to other industries.
The announcement comes after President Donald Trump’s recent statement that the federal government will take a 10% stake in U.S. chipmaker Intel. Trump described the agreement in the Oval Office as a “great deal for them.”
Intel stated that the funds for the White House deal would come from grants that had been awarded but not yet disbursed, including money promised under the US CHIPS and Science Act, which was passed during President Joe Biden’s administration.
Today, Hassett remarked on the Intel deal, saying that funds from the CHIPS Act are being disbursed as scheduled.
Hassett was asked whether the Intel deal signaled the start of a broader effort by the U.S. government to acquire equity stakes in other subsidized industries or companies within the AI and chip sectors.
“I think this is a very, very special circumstance because of the massive amount of CHIPS Act spending that was coming Intel’s way. But the president has made it clear all the way back to the campaign that he thinks that, in the end, it would be great if the U.S. could start to build up a sovereign wealth fund. And so I’m sure that at some point there’ll be more transactions, if not in this industry in other industries,” he concluded.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick stated that the Intel deal, “strengthens US leadership in semiconductors, which will both grow our economy and help secure America’s technological edge.”
By CEO NA Editorial Staff
