Supreme irony: AMD got rid of GloFo's predecessor to survive; Intel may now merge with the foundry to do the same

(Image credit: Shutterstock / Alexander Tolstykh)

GlobalFoundries was spun off when AMD decided to go fabless 16 years ago
Thomas Caulfield’s leadership made GloFo profitable; now rumors link him to Intel
A merger could help Intel, but regulatory hurdles might block the deal

GlobalFoundries (GloFlo) was founded in March 2009 when a struggling AMD spun off its manufacturing division to go fabless, a move designed to help it survive in the highly competitive semiconductor industry.

GloFo eventually became a key player in the foundry business, with a global manufacturing footprint across the US, Europe, and Asia, focusing on specialty chips rather than competing at the leading edge. Under the leadership of Thomas Caulfield, who became CEO in 2018, GlobalFoundries pursued a strategy that led it to become the third-largest semiconductor foundry by revenue, and a public listing in 2021.

However, speculation is currently brewing that Caulfield could be set to become the next CEO of AMD’s long time chip rival, Intel. As reported by eeNews Europe, the rumors began following an unexpected leadership change at GlobalFoundries. Caulfield is set to move from CEO to executive chairman, with Tim Breen, who has also been at the company since 2018, taking over as CEO. This shift has led observers to question whether Caulfield may be preparing for a leadership role at Intel, which has been without a permanent CEO since Pat Gelsinger’s departure in December 2024.

Regulatory hurdles

Caulfield has extensive experience in semiconductor manufacturing but has not led a product company like Intel. This has fueled suggestions that instead of simply taking over as CEO, he could oversee a merger between Intel and GloFo. In such a scenario, eeNews Europe suggests that Caulfield would become executive chair of the combined entity, with Michelle Johnston Holthaus leading Intel’s product business and Breen integrating GlobalFoundries into Intel Foundry.

A merger would definitely benefit both parties. While AMD has seen its fortunes soar in recent times, intel has been struggling. Joining forces with GlobalFoundries could allow the merged company to offer a broader range of manufacturing capabilities.

Adding further fuel to the rumor mill, eeNews Europe reports that observers on a Reddit stream noted a recent purchase of 8,913,000 Intel shares at $19.29. This unusual transaction occurred two days before GlobalFoundries announced its leadership changes, drawing comparisons to the $172 million stock incentive given to Gelsinger when he became Intel’s CEO in 2021.

Any potential merger would of course face regulatory hurdles, particularly in China, which previously blocked Intel’s attempt to acquire Tower Semiconductor. If approval proves difficult, eeNews Europe suggests Intel could appoint Caulfield as CEO while maintaining close ties with GlobalFoundries.

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Wayne Williams is a freelancer writing news for TechRadar Pro. He has been writing about computers, technology, and the web for 30 years. In that time he wrote for most of the UK’s PC magazines, and launched, edited and published a number of them too.