Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed on Tuesday that the US government is considering an extraordinary investment in struggling chipmaker Intel. But they gave different answers about what the Trump administration sought to do with that stake.

The White House confirmed on Tuesday that the Trump administration is working on a deal that could see the US government taking a 10% stake in chip giant Intel. "The president wants to put America's needs first, both from a national security and economic perspective," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

SoftBank is investing $2 billion in Intel, even as the White House is considering taking a 10% stake in chipmaker per reports, as talks with the company and Trump's team advance.