Government Waives Performance Benchmarks for Intel Despite $11 Billion in Federal Support

After taking a 10% equity stake in Intel worth $8.9 billion, the government waived performance benchmarks and accountability requirements despite Intel receiving over $11 billion in total federal support through CHIPS Act grants and additional programs. The benchmark waiver eliminates standards that would have required Intel to demonstrate progress toward domestic semiconductor manufacturing goals, job creation targets, and technological milestones justifying the massive taxpayer investment. Without performance metrics, taxpayers have no mechanism to ensure Intel actually delivers on the national security and economic competitiveness objectives that justified the CHIPS Act funding. The waiver exemplifies state capitalism’s corruption: politically connected corporations receive billions in taxpayer subsidies without accountability, while the government’s equity stake provides no governance rights to enforce performance. This arrangement rewards Intel shareholders and executives with federal cash while eliminating oversight that would protect taxpayer interests, transforming industrial policy into corporate welfare for Trump-aligned companies willing to grant government equity in exchange for subsidy checks without strings attached.