INTEL Corp said yesterday that it has chosen its Chief Operating Officer Brian Krzanich as its new CEO. He will steer the world's largest chipmaker in a world where PC sales are cratering while smartphones and tablets thrive.

Krzanich will replace Paul Otellini on May 16, at the company's annual meeting. Otellini had announced his decision to resign in November.

Krzanich, 52, has worked at Intel since 1982. The COO job is the traditional stepping-stone to the CEO post at Intel; both Otellini and his predecessor Craig Barrett held that job before becoming CEO.

The change in command comes at a critical time for Intel. After thriving for decades as the dominant seller of PC microprocessors, the company is scrambling to prove it can make chips that work well on smartphones and tablet computers.

Qualcomm Inc and other chipmakers have gotten the upper hand in the mobile-device market so far, undercutting Intel's financial performance and standing among investors. Last year, both Intel's earnings and stock price fell by 15 percent from 2011, but sales of chips to business PCs and servers are helping prop up performance.