For more than three decades, Lip-Bu Tan invested in the Chinese economic boom, placing the kind of no-brainer bets that enriched venture capitalists and fund managers around the world and across

Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan defended his integrity and vowed to continue leading the semiconductor company through a "critical moment."

A change in leadership could pile pressure on the company as it pushes through a major strategic reset that Lip-Bu Tan started.