February 27, 2026
Silicon soap opera alert!
Intel Foundry boss leaves for Qualcomm
Exec jumps ship after 2 years as comments erupt over non-competes, ‘revolving door’ vibes
TLDR: Intel’s foundry chief Kevin O’Buckley left after two years to run Qualcomm’s global chip operations, while Intel put Naga Chandrasekaran in full control of its factories and tech roadmap. Commenters are split between ‘revolving door’ doom, legal debates over non-competes, and hopes the new boss finally steadies Intel’s foundry push.
Plot twist: after just two years, Intel’s foundry boss Kevin O’Buckley is off to Qualcomm—and the comments instantly went DEFCON 1. The top thread? Non-competes. One user asked if this is even legal, and the armchair lawyers flooded in. Some swear non-compete contracts are toothless in places like California, others counter with “NDAs, garden leave, and cooling-off periods still matter,” and point out he’s moving into operations, not Intel’s secret sauce lab. Meanwhile, Intel handed the keys to Naga Chandrasekaran, who now runs both the roadmap and the factories. Fans cheered the consolidation—“finally, one boss to own the whole mess”—while skeptics rolled their eyes: “another reorg speedrun, same vibes, different name.” Meme watch: popcorn GIFs, “revolving door” jokes, and hot takes that Qualcomm is collecting ops talent like Infinity Stones. Big question everyone keeps poking: will Qualcomm now send work to Intel’s factories? The smart money says “not so fast,” but the tea leaves are being read loudly. For context: Intel Foundry is Intel’s big comeback plan to make chips for others; Qualcomm designs phone chips and hires outside factories to build them. O’Buckley will run Qualcomm’s global ops and supply chain—basically turning designs into real chips. Intel insists the foundry push is still top priority under Naga. Receipts via Tom’s Hardware.
Key Points
- •Kevin O’Buckley left his role as head of Intel Foundry to join Qualcomm as EVP of Global Operations and Supply Chain.
- •Intel appointed Naga Chandrasekaran as GM of Intel Foundry and chief technology and operations officer, consolidating tech development and manufacturing oversight.
- •Chandrasekaran’s responsibilities include next-gen logic nodes, advanced packaging, test technologies, and global fab and assembly operations.
- •Navid Shahriari continues to lead packaging development and operations at Intel Foundry.
- •O’Buckley will report to Akash Palkhiwala at Qualcomm; whether Intel Foundry will produce Qualcomm designs is currently unknown.