Intel taps industry veteran Seok-Hee Lee to lead foundry packaging push

June 18 (Reuters) - Intel on Thursday named Seok-Hee Lee executive vice president of its contract chip-manufacturing division as it sharpens focus on its advanced packaging business.

The American chipmaker has been trying to reinvigorate its manufacturing business under CEO Lip-Bu Tan, after missing out on the AI boom.

The appointment follows President Donald Trump's announcement earlier in the day that Apple had agreed to work with Intel to design and manufacture its chips in the U.S. in a boost to the chipmaker's contract manufacturing business.

Advanced packaging has become increasingly important as chipmakers seek to improve performance by integrating multiple chips into a single package.

Lee, who will report directly to CEO Lip-Bu Tan, will lead all advanced packaging, system integration, back-end technology development and back-end manufacturing, Intel said in a statement.

A veteran of the semiconductor industry, Lee has led both SK On and SK Hynix as their CEO.

With Lee's appointment, Naga Chandrasekaran, executive vice president of Intel Foundry, will focus on front-end technology development and front-end manufacturing as Intel focuses on accelerating the ramp of 18A, Intel 14A, and future technologies.

In April, Intel hired Samsung foundry veteran Shawn Han to aid with its contract manufacturing effort.

Intel also landed Tesla as the first major customer for its next-generation 14A manufacturing process to make chips in the same month. The chip-making process is expected to enter mass production in 2029.

(Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City; Editing by Anil D'Silva)