> AFAIK, there is absolutely zero evidence either Intel or AMD CPUs are compromised, even less so that they're somehow remotely accessible by the US government...

The concerns are similar to US supplied fighters having the kill switch or remotely damaging centrifuges in Iran using software virus.

No one knows whether CPUs are compromised similar to no one knew beepers with explosives in Lebanon were compromised by Israel, allegedly during manufacturing. CPUs don't need to be accessed remotely, any compromised person locally will be enough.

These are fascinating cases to show how far state actors will go and how long the compromise can stay dormant.

The article talks about the management engines built into these chips. Parallel software stacks that can be reached over the network that can control the main OS.

The article does provide real world examples, as well as credible hypotheticals from academics. The 'compromise' is the built in features of the chips being discussed.