Intel's AI Chief Sachin Katti Defects to OpenAI After Just Six Months, Highlighting Chipmaker's AI Struggles

Intel CTO and AI boss quits to join OpenAI

Sachin Katti was one of new Intel CEO Lip Bu Tan's first appointments Sachin Katti, the exec Intel promoted to chief technology and AI officer in April, will leave the x86 giant to join OpenAI after just six months in the job. Katti was one of new Intel CEO Lip Bu Tan's early appointments when he took Chipzilla's big chait in March. News of Katti's departure seems to have played out on X, where OpenAI president and co-founder Greg Brockman welcomed the former Intel exec to the AI upstart. Katti replied with a post in which he declared himself "Excited for the opportunity to work with" Brockman, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and others at the company "on building out the compute infrastructure for AGI!" He also said he's very grateful for the tremendous opportunity and experience at Intel over the last 4 years leading networking, edge computing and AI," adding it was the "Privilege of a lifetime to have worked closely with" Intel CEO Lip Bu Tan, past CEO Pat Gelsinger, and Intel's edge and networking boss Nick McKeown. Lip Bu Tan has said he will add leadership of Intel's AI efforts to his role. Katti's departure is a terrible look for Intel, which has struggled to develop competitive AI accelerators to match those from established rivals Nvidia and AMD. Intel is also arguably behind hyperscalers like Google and AWS that developed their own AI silicon and probably trails Broadcom's ability to design AI hardware - a capability OpenAI apparently rates so highly it tapped the firm to build its own custom accelerators. Nor has Chipzilla proven it's up to the task of making sophisticated AI semiconductors in its foundries, which are yet to secure a major AI customer. OpenAI also has plenty to prove. The company appears to be losing billions each quarter but has committed to spending many tens of billions on projects including giant datacenter builds, creating a consumer AI device, and developing artificial general intelligence - machines with powers of cognition superior to humans - an effort Katti mentioned as a factor motivating his move from Intel. OpenAI is doing all of the above while trying to change from a nonprofit structure to allow it to more easily find investors. In recent weeks, CEO Sam Altman has called for government assistance to fund its efforts, on grounds they represent vital national infrastructure.

Intel CEO to oversee its AI efforts after executive departs for OpenAI

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Intel (INTC.O), opens new tab said on Monday its CEO Lip-Bu Tan would oversee the chipmaker's artificial intelligence efforts after the firm's chief technology officer departed for ChatGPT maker OpenAI. Sachin Katti, who has led Intel's AI efforts since a management reorganization at the chipmaker in January, said on social media site X that he had joined OpenAI. "We thank Sachin for his contributions and wish him all the best. Lip-Bu will lead the AI and Advanced Technologies Groups, working closely with the team," Intel said in a statement. "AI remains one of Intel's highest strategic priorities, and we are focused on executing our technology and product roadmap across emerging AI workloads," the company added. OpenAI President Greg Brockman said on X that Katti would be "designing and building our compute infrastructure, which will power our (artificial general intelligence) research and scale its applications to benefit everyone." OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A number of top executives have departed Intel since Tan took over in March and attempted a turnaround at the embattled chipmaker. Intel has struggled to attract a big customer for its contract manufacturing business, or foundry. While the company's central processors are used in AI server systems - at a smaller scale than the main AI chips - Intel has struggled to produce a data center AI chip that can rival the silicon designed by Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab and manufactured by Taiwan's TSMC. Katti joined Intel roughly four years ago and worked in the networking group, which he eventually ran under former CEO Pat Gelsinger. Tan promoted Katti to chief technology officer and chief AI officer in April, when he flattened the company's leadership structure. Previously, Katti was a Stanford professor for nearly 15 years. Tan has elevated some executives and expanded roles. Naga Chandrasekaran, who was running Intel's manufacturing subsidiary, was given more responsibility for working with external contract manufacturing customers. Tan has also brought in new executives from outside the company, such as hiring former Arm executive Kevork Kechichian to run the company's data center unit. Reporting by Stephen Nellis, Jeffrey Dastin and Max Cherney in San Francisco; Editing by Jamie Freed Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab * Suggested Topics: * Artificial Intelligence Max A. Cherney Thomson Reuters Max A. Cherney is a correspondent for Reuters based in San Francisco, where he reports on the semiconductor industry and artificial intelligence. He joined Reuters in 2023 and has previously worked for Barron's magazine and its sister publication, MarketWatch. Cherney graduated from Trent University with a degree in history.

Intel's top AI executive leaves for OpenAI after 6 months in role

Intel's top artificial intelligence executive has defected to OpenAI after six months on the job, marking the latest in a series of senior departures from the chipmaker as it struggles to make a mark in the AI sector. Sachin Katti is joining OpenAI to work on its AI infrastructure, the companies confirmed on Monday. Intel chief executive Lip-Bu Tan will take over his responsibilities. Katti was deeply involved in Intel's push to develop competitive AI software and chips to compete with dominant rivals Nvidia and AMD. He joined Intel in late 2021, and was promoted to chief technology and AI officer in April. His move marks the second time this year that Intel has lost a top AI executive, after Justin Hotard, who led Intel's data centre and AI business, left to become chief executive of Nokia in the spring. It comes after chief strategy officer Safroadu Yeboah‑Amankwah left over the summer. In September, Intel announced that Michelle Johnston Holthaus, former co-chief executive and head of Intel's chips business, would leave after more than 30 years at the company. Intel's failure to launch a competitive product to Nvidia's graphics processing units and capitalise on the AI boom in recent years has contributed to its financial woes. The chipmaker has spent billions of dollars on manufacturing facilities in the US while struggling to grow its revenue from chip sales. Intel shares are up 73 per cent in the past six months after the Trump administration took a 10 per cent stake in the company, which was followed by multibillion-dollar investments from Nvidia and SoftBank. Silicon Valley has meanwhile been gripped by an AI talent war as tech companies race to compete in the technology. OpenAI president and co-founder Greg Brockman, in a post on X, said Katti would be working on "designing and building our compute infrastructure". The $500bn start-up has committed to some $1.4tn in spending on the infrastructure powering AI over the next eight years. Intel thanked Katti, adding that "AI remains one of Intel's highest strategic priorities, and we are focused on executing our technology and product road map across emerging AI workloads". The chipmaker also announced the appointment of Craig Barratt, a former Intel senior vice-president and Google executive, to its board on Monday.

Intel AI Chief Sachin Katti Joins OpenAI | AIM

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan will now oversee the chipmaker's AI efforts following Katti's departure. OpenAI president and co-founder Greg Brockman announced that Sachin Katti, a senior technology leader formerly at Intel, is joining OpenAI. Brockman shared the update on X, saying he is "incredibly excited to work with him on designing and building our compute infrastructure, which will power our AGI research and scale its applications to benefit everyone." According to Reuters, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan will now oversee the chipmaker's AI and advanced technologies efforts following Katti's departure. "We thank Sachin for his contributions and wish him all the best. Lip-Bu will lead the AI and Advanced Technologies Groups, working closely with the team," Intel wrote in a statement. Katti previously served as senior vice president, chief technology and AI officer, and GM of the Network and Edge Group (NEX) at Intel Corporation, where he led the company's overall AI strategy, product roadmap, and research efforts through Intel Labs. He was also responsible for strengthening Intel's engagement with startups and developers, as well as advancing networking and edge technologies. Before joining Intel, Katti had an accomplished academic career as a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Stanford University, conducting pioneering research in wireless communications, networking, and applied coding theory. His work earned him several honours, including the ACM Doctoral Dissertation Award (honourable mention) and the William Bennett Prize for Best Paper in IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking. Beyond academia, Katti is a successful entrepreneur and industry influencer. He co-founded Kumu Networks, known for its breakthroughs in self-interference cancellation technology, and later Uhana, which built AI-driven solutions for mobile network optimisation and was later acquired by VMware. Katti holds a PhD in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT and a BTech in electrical engineering from IIT Bombay.

Intel's AI Chief Sachin Katti Gets Poached by OpenAI, Raising Doubts About Team Blue's Future in the AI Industry

Intel's CTO and AI chief, Sachin Katti, has left the company and has now joined OpenAI to power the company's push towards AGI, but interestingly, he has left his former firm in a very 'uncertain' stage. Intel has been under massive restructuring ever since CEO Lip-Bu Tan took over, and one of the more optimistic moves by the company was appointing Sachin as the company's CTO and AI chief. For those unaware, Sachin has been leading Intel's AI strategy in recent times, and the last time we did see him was back at the Intel Tech Tour, where he announced the company's roadmap for a 'comeback' in the AI race. However, just months after his post as Intel's CTO, Sachin Katti has revealed his switch to OpenAI, where he will be "designing and building compute infrastructure" of the AI giant. Based on what CRN says, the position of AI chief would now be overseen directly by CEO Lip-Bu Tan. This does put the company's future in the industry under uncertainity, given that announcements by former CTO Sachin Katti at the ITT were centered around the company's AI roadmap, and also under his leadership, Intel showcased their inference-focused 'Crescent Island' solution, which featured 160 GB of memory, offering energy-efficient performance. We will have to see whether Intel's CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, has a similar approach to Intel's AI business. However, the departure of Sachin Katti will likely leave a strain on the company's operations. Intel's AI strategy has been underperforming ever since the rise of the technology. Since the time of former CEO Pat Gelsinger, the firm was looking to capitalize on the inference segment, despite 'training' being the hype. Now, as AI inference gains demand, Team Blue still hasn't presented a credible solution, which raises concerns about what the company plans to achieve in the upcoming months. We do know that Intel has an "annual product cadence" in place, with Jaguar Shores coming next, but with Sachin Katti and other executives from multiple divisions leaving Team Blue, it appears that the internal optimism defintely lacks. For now, Intel's main priority is boosting shareholder value, which the company has achieved through partnerships with NVIDIA, SoftBank, and the Trump administration. However, when it comes to the consumer and AI segments, Team Blue appears to lag behind.

Intel AI Leader Sachin Katti Decamps To OpenAI

Intel CEO made Katti the company's chief technology and artificial intelligence officer in April. Sachin Katti, Intel's chief technology and artificial intelligence officer, is leaving the chipmaker for ChatGPT creator OpenAI. Katti will work on building out OpenAI's compute infrastructure for artificial general intelligence, a theoretical form of AI akin to human intelligence, according to a post the executive published on the X social media network. "Very grateful for the tremendous opportunity and experience at Intel over the last 4 years leading networking, edge computing and AI," Katti said in his post. [RELATED: Exclusive: Intel Is Losing A Data Center AI Executive To AMD] CRN has reached out to Intel and San Francisco-based OpenAI for comment. OpenAI President and co-founder Greg Brockman posted on X that he is "incredibly excited to work with him on designing and building our compute infrastructure, which will power our AGI research and scale its applications to benefit everyone." Lip-Bu Tan, CEO of Santa Clara, Calif.-based Intel, appointed Katti to the role in April, adding to Katti's responsibilities as leader of the Network and Edge Group, which he has done since early 2023, a little more than a year after he joined Intel. Katti is an adjunct professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Stanford University, where he has worked on several research projects related to technology, including one on "delivering visibility and operational automation for [machine learning] at the edge." He was previously co-founder and CEO of Kumu Networks, a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company that sought to revolutionize the way wireless systems are built, according to his LinkedIn account. Other executives to announce their departure from Intel in recent days include former Global Channel Chief John Kalvin, Vice President of Data Center AI Product Management Saurabh Kulkarni and 25-year company veteran Rob Bruckner, whom Intel's CEO appointed to lead the Platform Engineering Group.

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan Takes Charge Of AI Strategy At Chipmaker After CTO Sachin Katti Departs For ChatGPT-Parent OpenAI - Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), ARM Holdings (NASDAQ:ARM)

Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) CEO Lip-Bu Tan will personally oversee the company's artificial intelligence initiatives after CTO Sachin Katti left the chipmaker to join OpenAI. Intel CTO Sachin Katti Leaves For OpenAI Katti, who had led Intel's AI efforts since a management reshuffle in January, announced on X, formerly Twitter, that he had joined OpenAI. Intel thanked Katti for his contributions, stating, "Lip-Bu will lead the AI and Advanced Technologies Groups, working closely with the team," reported Reuters. "AI remains one of Intel's highest strategic priorities, and we are focused on executing our technology and product roadmap across emerging AI workloads," the company stated. ChatGPT-maker's president Greg Brockman praised Katti's new role, noting that he will be "designing and building our compute infrastructure, which will power our AGI research and scale its applications to benefit everyone." See Also: Ming-Chi Kuo Says Elon Musk's AI Chip Strategy Is No Bluff -- Tesla's Plan To Build Its Own Fabs Marks A Major Shift Away From TSMC: Here's Why Intel's AI And Chip Challenges Amid Executive Departures Katti's exit is part of a broader trend of top executives leaving Intel since Tan took over in March and initiated a turnaround strategy. The company has struggled to attract major customers for its contract manufacturing business. It faces stiff competition from Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (NYSE:TSM) in the AI chip space. While Intel's central processors are used in AI server systems, the company has yet to produce a data center AI chip that rivals the performance of Nvidia's offerings. Leadership Restructuring And External Hires Tan has restructured Intel's leadership, flattening the hierarchy and promoting internal executives. Naga Chandrasekaran, formerly in charge of Intel's manufacturing subsidiary, now has expanded responsibilities for external contract manufacturing. Intel has also brought in new talent from outside, including former Arm Holdings (NASDAQ:ARM) executive Kevork Kechichian to oversee the data center unit. On Monday, Intel also appointed Craig H Barratt, Ph.D., 63, to its board of directors, effective immediately. Barratt will serve as an independent director, the company said. Intel Reports Modest Revenue Growth In Third Quarter Intel reported third-quarter revenue of $13.65 billion, beating analyst expectations of $13.14 billion. Adjusted earnings were 23 cents per share, well above estimates of one cent. Year-over-year growth was modest across segments: Client Computing Group rose 5% to $8.5 billion, Data Center and AI slipped 1% to $4.1 billion, All Other climbed 3% to $1 billion, Intel Products grew 3% to $12.7 billion, and Intel Foundry fell 2% to $4.2 billion. Intel stock has climbed 90.16% year to date, with Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings indicating a strong upward trend across short, medium and long-term time frames. Click here for a detailed comparison of Intel's performance against its industry peers and competitors. Read More: Tesla Investor Ross Gerber Says 'Super Sad' To See Federal EV Subsidies End: 'Credits Created...' Photo by Tada Images via Shutterstock Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. ARMARM Holdings PLC$155.281.90%OverviewINTCIntel Corp$38.310.47%NVDANVIDIA Corp$199.996.29%TSMTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd$295.803.25%Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Intel AI chief leaves for OpenAI infrastructure role By Investing.com

Investing.com-- Intel's chief technology and artificial intelligence officer, Sachin Katti, left the chipmaker for a compute infrastructure at OpenAI, he said in a social media post. Katti will work on "building out the compute infrastructure for (artificial general intelligence)" at OpenAI, the executive said in a post on X. OpenAI president and co-founder Greg Brockman also confirmed the move in a social media post. The move comes as OpenAI builds out the data center infrastructure that powers its AI programs. The ChatGPT maker has committed hundreds of billions of dollars to acquiring more computing capacity, and also has plans to sell computing capacity. Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), meanwhile, is struggling to find its footing after largely lagging rivals such as NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and AMD (NASDAQ:AMD) in capitalizing on the AI boom of the past three years.

Intel CEO to oversee its AI efforts after executive departs for OpenAI

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -Intel said on Monday its CEO Lip-Bu Tan would oversee the chipmaker's artificial intelligence efforts after the firm's chief technology officer departed for ChatGPT maker OpenAI. Sachin Katti, who has led Intel's AI efforts since a management reorganization at the chipmaker in January, said on social media site X that he had joined OpenAI. "We thank Sachin for his contributions and wish him all the best. Lip-Bu will lead the AI and Advanced Technologies Groups, working closely with the team," Intel said in a statement. "AI remains one of Intel's highest strategic priorities, and we are focused on executing our technology and product roadmap across emerging AI workloads," the company added. OpenAI President Greg Brockman said on X that Katti would be "designing and building our compute infrastructure, which will power our (artificial general intelligence) research and scale its applications to benefit everyone." OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Reporting by Stephen Nellis, Jeffrey Dastin and Max Cherney in San Francisco;)