Intel executives Alex Katouzian (left) and Pushkar Ranade (right), newly appointed to drive Intel’s client computing and innovation strategy. Intel announced on May 4, 2026, that Alex Katouzian is joining as Executive Vice President and GM of its Client Computing & Physical AI Group. And that long‐time Intel insider, Pushkar Ranade, will become its permanent Chief Technology Officer (CTO).
Both Alex Katouzian and Pushkar Ranade will report to CEO Lip‑Bu Tan, which is a signal of a renewed focus on linking Intel’s traditional PC (client computing) business with emerging “physical AI” systems (such as robotics and autonomous machines) in an AI‑driven market.
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About Alex Katouzian
Alex Katouzian brings more than two decades of experience at Qualcomm to Intel. At Qualcomm, he rose through engineering and product ranks to become Executive Vice President and Group GM of Mobile, Compute and Extended Reality.
He is widely credited with helping scale Qualcomm’s Snapdragon mobile platforms and steering its push into PC and XR (extended‑reality) chips. Katouzian will align Intel’s client computing business with emerging AI-driven systems, spanning robotics, autonomous machines and other edge devices. In practical terms, he now oversees the traditional PC chip unit (a long‑time revenue mainstay) alongside Intel’s new “Physical AI” efforts.
- Role: EVP & GM, Client Computing & Physical AI Group. Katouzian officially joins Intel in May 2026.
- Background: 25+ years at Qualcomm (joining in 2002), culminating as EVP/GM of mobile, compute and XR.
- Key focus: Overseeing Intel’s PC chip business as expanding into AI‑enabled hardware (a strategy Intel CEO Tan described as “reimagining client computing beyond the traditional PC”).
In announcing Katouzian’s hire, Tan noted his “deep technical expertise, firm operational discipline, and decades of experience building and scaling global compute platforms”.
Katouzian also noted on LinkedIn that he was “excited to join Lip‑Bu and the Intel team at this critical moment to help scale innovation and deliver the next generation of computing experiences”.
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About Pushkar Ranade: Intel Insider Becomes CTO
Pushkar Ranade, who has served as Intel’s interim CTO since late 2025, has now been confirmed as Chief Technology Officer. In this expanded role, he leads Intel’s long‑term technology strategy and “special technology projects,” focusing on next‑frontier areas such as quantum computing, neuromorphic architectures, photonics and new materials.
He will also continue as Chief of Staff to CEO Lip‑Bu Tan, ensuring Intel’s technology roadmap continues to be aligned with business priorities.
- Role: Chief Technology Officer (permanent), reporting to the CEO.
- Background: Ranade is a longtime Intel engineer (over 17 years) with two stints at the company. He has held senior roles across Intel’s Foundry and product businesses, working on advanced semiconductor processes (65nm to 22nm nodes) and system‑architecture optimisations. Between his Intel tenures, he served as VP of Technology at SuVolta, where he led development of novel low‑power transistor designs.
- Key focus: As CTO, Ranade will shepherd Intel’s research in emerging technologies (quantum, photonics, neuromorphic, etc.) and coordinate special projects, while employing his engineering background to bridge R&D with commercial product planning.
His deep expertise as an author and inventor in semiconductor device physics and process integration, combined with close work as chief of staff to the CEO, enables him to align ambitious new research with Intel’s core strengths.
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