A Bloomberg report said Silver Lake Management, a large private equity firm, has begun exclusive talks to buy a controlling stake in Intel's Altera division. Altera focuses on versatile chips that are widely used in telecommunications networks. The size of the stake is still being worked out, but negotiations have moved forward, people familiar with the deal said, speaking on condition of anonymity. They caution that things could slow down or the deal might not happen. When asked, people speaking for Intel and Silver Lake did not comment.

The news jolted the market, sending Intel shares up as much as 17% on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, marking their biggest single-day gain in nearly five years. The surge was driven in part by separate speculation about a potential spinoff involving Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC). By late afternoon trading in New York, Intel shares were up 15%, valuing the company at about $117 billion. If the sale goes through, it would mark a major shift for Intel as it tries to reshape its business. While there is no information on the size of the deal, last November Lattice Semiconductor Corp. and a group of buyout firms expressed interest in Altera. Some insiders said that potential buyers valued Altera at just $9 billion, a big drop for Intel, which bought Altera in 2015 for about $17 billion. Intel faces continued challenges following Gelsinger's departure, as the company searches for both a new CEO and a replacement for its Data Center and AI division head, who recently left to become Nokia's chief executive.