TSMC accuses former executive of leaking trade secrets to Intel

TSMC and Intel are in conflict over a former executive of the Taiwanese chip company who made the move to Intel this summer.

TSMC accuses former employee Wei-Jen Lo of leaking internal company information to competitor Intel. Lo held senior positions within TSMC between 2004 and 2024 and surprisingly moved to Intel this year. The Taiwanese prosecutor’s office conducted a search at Lo’s residence this morning.

The sensitive transfer has clearly rubbed Hsinchu the wrong way. TSMC dragged its former engineer to court without mercy for violating a non-compete agreement. Lo allegedly lied upon his departure, claiming he was leaving TSMC for a career in academia.

Trade secrets

The chipmaker doesn’t want to leave it at that. Now it’s also sending prosecutors after him. TSMC claims with ‘high probability’ that Lo ‘uses, leaks, discloses or transfers trade secrets and confidential information to Intel, making legal action necessary’. It sees evidence in the fact that Lo repeatedly contacted the R&D team during his final months at TSMC, even though as head of the Corporate Strategy Development team he had no business being there.

The chipmaker is invoking Taiwanese trade secrets law, which is designed to prevent intellectual property from Taiwanese companies from being transferred abroad. During the search, laptops and USB drives were seized, Reuters reports. Lo’s shares and real estate also risk being seized by the court while the investigation continues.

Intel denies

In a statement, Intel defends its new employee, who was brought in as a top transfer last summer. “Based on everything we know, we have no reason to believe that the allegations against Mr. Lo are founded,” it tells Reuters, along with a reference to its strict policy against the ‘transfer of confidential information or intellectual property from third parties’.

Intel sees no problem with the fact that Lo made the move from one of its most formidable competitors in the chip industry. “The movement of talent between companies is a normal and healthy part of our industry, and this situation is no different,” it adds to the response.

This isn’t the first time Intel employees have come under fire. Even new CEO Lip-Bu Tan didn’t escape controversy due to alleged investments in Chinese technology companies. Donald Trump loudly called for his resignation in August, but fortunately for Tan, after a conversation at the White House he was once again a great guy. The US government shortly thereafter took a ten percent stake in Intel.