Intel spins off its corporate venture arm, Intel Capital, into a standalone fund

Intel said it plans to spin off its corporate venture arm, Intel Capital, into an independent fund, with Intel as the “anchor investor.”

A Press release On Tuesday, Intel said the move would be “[enable] greater autonomy” and “flexibility to attract external capital.” Intel expects Intel Capital to begin operating independently in the second half of 2025, at which time it will be rebranded.

The existing Intel Capital team will move to the new fund and business operations will continue as normal throughout the transition, Intel said.

“The separation of Intel Capital is a win-win scenario because it gives the fund access to new sources of capital to expand its franchise and allows both companies to continue to benefit from a productive long-term strategic partnership,” said David Zinsner, Intel’s co-chief executive officer and head Financial officer, in a statement. “This move supports our broader strategy to maximize the value of our assets while driving greater focus and efficiency across the business.”

Intel founded Intel Capital in 1991 under former Intel Executive Vice President Les Vadasz. Intel Capital’s original mission was to help develop Intel’s ecosystem through equity investments in strategic companies.

Intel rivals AMD and Nvidia have followed suit with their own venture funds. Nvidia in particular has been aggressive with its investments over the past year to pour About $1 billion in AI companies.

Currently, Intel Capital has $5 billion in assets under management. Over the past 30 years or so, it has invested in more than 1,800 companies in sectors such as silicon, 5G, devices and cloud. In all, Intel Capital has deployed more than $20 billion in cash in markets including North America, Western Europe, Israel and Asia Pacific.

Since 2014, Intel Capital has increased its investment in AI startups. Some of its notable portfolio companies are AI chip startups SambanovaIsraeli AI company AI21 is goodHumanoid Robotics Pharm imageand AI developer platforms Anniskill.

The decision to spin out Intel Capital comes after the company’s board of directors forced out CEO Pat Gelsinger Last month, Zinsner and Michelle Johnston hired Holthaus as interim co-CEOs in his place. Holthaus is CEO of Intel Products, a recently created division that spans the chipmaker’s consumer-focused organization as well as its data center, AI, network and edge businesses.

Intel has had a rough go of it lately. Last October, the company posted a quarterly loss of $16.6 billion — the largest in its 56-year history. And 2024 was Intel’s worst year ever Since its release in 1971.

To streamline operations and cut costs, Intel has taken steps to spin off one of its business divisions, Intel Foundry, which is responsible for manufacturing chips. in September. Intel is in the midst of a $10 billion cost-cutting plan, which includes laying off 15,000 workers. And the company is said to have considered selling its driverless car arm Mobileye and its enterprise and cloud networking divisions.

There are suitors, including Qualcomm allegedly approached Intel about a possible takeover.