- Intel job cuts leave Linux vital core pilots without official engineering support
- Intel orphaned pilots could possibly cause material compatibility problems for Linux -based systems
- Community developers may need to intervene to replace the expertise of the Lost Intel Pilot
Intel’s continuous restructuring has led to significant changes in its contributions to the development of the Linux nucleus.
The Linux kernel distribution list shows that several pilots developed by Intel have been marked as orphans after the key engineers’ release.
An example is the Intel Wwan Iosm pilot, used with certain M.2 modems and found in some Chromebooks, which no longer has a maintainer after the departure of Mr. Chetan Kumar.
Loss of maintainers for the main Intel Linux pilots
The Intel PTP DFL TOD driver, which manages the time of the day on FPGA cards, was also left without support after the release of Tianfei Zhang.
In addition, the Intel Ethernet RDMA pilot lost one of its maintays, Mustafa Ismail, leaving only one Intel engineer to manage it.
The other modifications include the Keem Bay DRM driver, the core probes code once supervised by Anil S Keshavamurthy and the T7XX 5G WWAN driver, which lost the two maintainers.
These maintenance changes are part of a broader restructuring at Intel, which has already reduced more than 12,000 jobs in 2025 so far.
The withdrawal of the company from specific material segments, such as the production of WWAN and MODEM, also contributed to the decision to stop maintaining certain related drivers.
If no replacement is found for the departure of the departure, the affected drivers could gradually become obsolete as Linux evolves.
This could create performance and compatibility problems for equipment still used, including laptops for programming, mobile workstations and systems carrying out various Linux distros.
Without updates in the first part, owners may need to rely on corrective corrections created by the community or completely new drivers to keep their devices operational.
Historically, the Linux community has intervened to maintain the orphan code, sometimes producing solutions that correspond or exceed the work of the original supplier.
However, complex engines, in particular those that involve debugging tools, high performance networking or specialized equipment, can be more difficult to take care of without the understanding of original engineers.
While Intel continues to contribute to the Linux kernel, its smaller footprint in certain areas raises questions on the long -term support of its equipment.
The ability of community developers to replace lost maintainers will decide how these Intel -based Linux systems continue to operate.
Via Phoronix
