Yet Intel still matters, as Mr Trump’s interest shows. The most advanced chips, vital for smartphones and AI, are now made almost entirely by TSMC. America’s tech giants depend on it. Such reliance on a single supplier—particularly one based in Taiwan—is risky.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Tuesday that chipmaker Intel should give the government an equity stake in the company in exchange for grants earlier committed by former president Joe Biden's administration.

The billionaire investor often called Japan's Warren Buffett is making a huge bet on a legendary US firm. Shares jumped eight percent.

An Intel deal would be one of the largest government interventions in private industry since the U.S. auto industry's bailout under President Obama.