Intel's Packaging Veteran
Intel appoints SK hynix veteran Lee Seok-hee to lead advanced foundry packaging.
Anonymous
Key Points
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Intel said Lee Seok-hee will report directly to Intel’s CEO in his foundry role—described in one report as a direct line to CEO Lip-Bu Tan (and another report similarly notes a direct reporting line to CEO Pat Gelsinger).
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Lee’s move came shortly after his departure from SK On: he resigned as SK On CEO on May 28 due to health issues, and then joined Intel just over 20 days later.
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As CEO of SK hynix, Lee led the introduction of MR-MUF (Mass Reflow Molded Underfill) packaging technology—described as replacing the traditional film-type method—which the article said helped pave the way for growth tied to HBM3.
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Intel also clarified internal foundry responsibilities: while Lee leads advanced packaging and post-process (back-end), Nagaswamy Chandrasekaran is named to continue leading front-end technology development and front-end manufacturing.
Intel has appointed Seok-Hee Lee as Executive Vice President of Intel Foundry, putting him in charge of advanced packaging, system integration, and back-end chip manufacturing. Lee reports directly to CEO Lip-Bu Tan, according to Intel Newsroom. The hire lands just 20 days after Lee resigned as CEO of SK On, citing health concerns.
The announcement came on June 18, 2026 — the same day President Trump declared a "landmark agreement" between Apple and Intel to make chips on U.S. soil. Intel shares surged 10.5% that day to a record $133.82, per Investing.com, pushing the company's valuation past $600 billion.
Lee's 30-Year Career Built for This Moment
Lee is a 30-year chip industry veteran. He spent 11 years at Intel from 2000 to 2010, making this appointment a homecoming of sorts, according to Seoul Economic Daily. He later rose to lead SK hynix and then SK On, two of South Korea's biggest names in memory and batteries.
At SK hynix, Lee championed a packaging method called MR-MUF — Mass Reflow Molded Underfill. In plain terms, it replaces a traditional film layer with a molded material that handles heat better when stacking chips. That technology helped SK hynix dominate the HBM3 memory market, which powers today's AI chips, per The Asia Business Daily.
Why Advanced Packaging Is Intel's Make-or-Break Battle
Traditional chips are getting harder to shrink. The industry's answer is advanced packaging — gluing together separate chip pieces, called chiplets, into one powerful unit. Intel already has two packaging tools: EMIB and Foveros. Tan said Lee will help "ramp technologies like EMIB-T and HBI to high volume," according to Intel Newsroom.
TSMC still controls 73% of the pure-play foundry market as of Q1 2026, per Counterpoint Research. Intel is betting that world-class packaging — stitching together chips from multiple companies into one system — is the fastest way to close that gap and win AI and high-performance computing customers.
Intel Splits Foundry Leadership Between Front and Back End
Intel drew a clear line inside its foundry division. Lee owns the back end: packaging, system integration, and post-process manufacturing. Naga Chandrasekaran keeps the front end: cutting-edge chip node development at 18A and 14A, plus front-end manufacturing operations, according to StreetInsider.
The split mirrors how TSMC organizes its own engineering teams. Navid Shahriari, who held a senior foundry role for 37 years, is retiring, clearing the path for this new structure. Intel is essentially running two specialized teams under one foundry roof.
South Korea Feels the Sting of a High-Profile Departure
Lee resigned from SK On on May 28, 2026, officially citing "health and stamina concerns." His resignation took effect June 1. Within three weeks, he was at Intel. Korean media described the move as a "brain drain" victory for the U.S., according to Seoul Economic Daily.
Industry insiders suggest his exit from SK On was timed carefully — coming just after he wrapped up a major restructuring of the BlueOval SK battery joint venture with Ford. Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities said the Lee hire, paired with the Apple deal, signals the "foundry landscape is splitting away from a single-supplier model" centered on TSMC, per Investing.com.
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