Intel Adds Trump Staffer To Lead Government Affairs Team, Picks CMO And Interim CTO

Four months after the U.S. government took a 10 percent equity stake in Intel, the company revealed three new leaders, including a former deputy assistant to the current administration and a new CMO that hails from SambaNova, a company that Intel is reportedly in advanced talks to buy.

Intel on Monday announced a Trump staffer as its new vice president of government affairs four months after the U.S. government took a stake in the semiconductor company, as well as two additional new executive appointments.

Robin Colwell, an attorney who most recently served as deputy assistant to President Donald Trump and deputy director of the National Economic Council and has served as counsel to several Republican congressmen, has joined Intel as the company’s senior vice president of government affairs, the company shared in a press release. She previously worked for the BGR Group, a lobbying firm based in Washington, D.C.

The company at the same time also revealed new senior leadership appointments within its marketing and communications and advanced technology strategy teams.

Colwell, for her part, will lead the company’s global engagement with policymakers, regulators, and industry leaders. She will work to advance Intel’s strategic priorities and position the company at the intersection of public policy, technology, and manufacturing, according to Intel.

“Robin’s broad experience and deep understanding of complex legal and policy environments will be invaluable to Intel,” said Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan in a statement. “She has a rare ability to navigate dynamic policy environments and deliver outcomes that benefit businesses, policymakers, and the communities they serve.”

Trump this past August announced that the U.S. government would be taking a 10 percent equity stake in Intel after initially calling for Tan’s resignation. Intel confirmed the deal two days later, saying that the agreement would give the U.S. government a 9.9 percent equity stake using $8.9 billion in previously allocated CHIPS and Science Act grants.

Intel at the time called the move a “historic” agreement that will support the “continued expansion of American technology and manufacturing.”

Meanwhile, Annie Shea Weckesser has been appointed senior vice president and chief marketing and communications officer, leading Intel’s newly integrated global marketing and communications organization. Weckesser joins Intel from SambaNova, a company that Intel is reportedly actively trying to acquire. Weckesser served as chief marketing officer for SambaNova and previously spent nearly a decade in global marketing and communications roles for Cisco Systems.

In addition to his current role as chief of staff to the CEO, Pushkar Ranade has been named interim chief technology officer leading the company’s advanced technology strategy, the company said.

Intel declined to comment further on the new hires.