Intel (INTC) CEO Pat Gelsinger has retired, effective Dec. 1, the company announced on Monday. The company's stock was trading higher following the news but has roughly halved in value year-to-date. Intel named CFO David Zinsner and Intel Products CEO Michelle Johnston interim co-CEOs, but they are working to find Gelsinger's permanent replacement.

The Futurum Group research director for semiconductors, EVs, and autos, Olivier Blanchard joins Catalysts Hosts Seana Smith and Madison Mills to discuss the news and what it means for Intel and investors going forward.

Blanchard says Gelsinger's retirement is "big" and "sudden" news, that "I don't think anybody really saw that coming." He adds, "I'm not sure that Intel's communications so far on this have been as clear as it could have been. But at the very least, you have two interim CEOs right now that are very competent. I think that the very first step, though, is going to be to find the next CEO, the next leader of Intel, and put it on the right path to recovery and growth."

The analyst says, "For Pat, I think it was a bit of a passion project and not just being the CEO of a company, but seeing it through ... So for him to exit this suddenly I feel that there must have been some differences in opinions about where the company needed to go and how. And that probably had something to do with the business having some members of the board wanting to split the business between foundry and design."

"Whatever precipitated Pat's exit must have had something to do with the speed at which Intel was making its turn right into AI. And so starting from scratch with a brand new CEO who hasn't had a lot of experience with Intel specifically might not yield that velocity that some of the board members who might be inclined to look for velocity are looking for."

Blanchard adds Intel's recent declines could be a buying opportunity since "the fundamentals of Intel are strong as a business and, I think, that its prospects are still very positive. And a company like Intel is often, I think, not just misunderstood but I think people sleep on Intel just because it's been a little bit late to the game with a few things, and it's had a few misses. But it's an extremely strong, extremely resilient and extremely embedded company in so many different really high growth verticals."

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This post was written by Naomi Buchanan.