Revisiting Intel’s Former CEO Strategy: Increase R&D During Recessions

Huo Xing Cai Jing reports that on May 12, technology industry analyst Tim Bajarin wrote an article reviewing Intel’s responses to past economic crises, stating that the company’s continued investment in R&D during downturns was a key factor in its subsequent return to growth. The article notes that during the 2008 global financial crisis, then-Intel CEO Paul Otellini did not cut R&D budgets amid the economic recession; instead, he chose to “double down” on the development of next-generation products. He believed that no matter how severe the crisis, the economy would eventually recover, and Intel must be prepared with products suited for the next growth cycle. Subsequently, between 2010 and 2012, as the smartphone, social media, and gaming industries surged, demand for high-performance chips rapidly increased, allowing Intel to successfully benefit from this wave of technological expansion. The article also points out that although the world currently faces pressures such as rising energy prices, geopolitical tensions, and increasing living costs, since the launch of ChatGPT in 2023 ignited the AI boom, artificial intelligence has become a major driver of renewed technology investment. The author argues that historical experience shows that companies capable of weathering economic cycles are often not those that cut the most costs during downturns, but those that continue investing in the future during periods of uncertainty.