Three indicted for stealing TSMC secrets to help Tokyo Electron, WSJ reports

Prosecutors in Taiwan indicted three people for allegedly stealing sensitive chip technology from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) to help one of its top suppliers, Tokyo Electron (TOELY), win more orders, according to a report by Yang Jie and Joyu Wang of the Wall Street Journal. A former TSMC employee, who later joined Tokyo Electron’s marketing division, allegedly obtained sensitive files related to 2-nanometer production from former colleagues. Prosecutors allege the information was used to improve Tokyo Electron’s etching machines to get its tools onto TSMC’s production lines. The three were charged under Taiwan’s security laws, and prosecutors requested prison sentences of up to 14 years for the primary suspect.