Taiwan prosecutors indicted a former deputy manager at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), surnamed Chen, for stealing trade secrets related to national core technologies to benefit China [1, 2, 3, 4]. Chen worked at TSMC from May 2023 to February 2024 in the deputy manager role [3].
Between 2023 and 2024, Chen allegedly conspired with a now-deceased Hong Kong national to create a semiconductor materials analysis company called CSMAC in China [2, 3, 4]. He copied 21 confidential TSMC documents covering core technologies and took them home to study with the intention of transferring the knowledge to CSMAC [2, 3, 4]. TSMC uncovered the unauthorized copying through an internal investigation and recovered all stolen technical documents [1, 2, 4].
The plan reportedly included poaching Taiwanese semiconductor talent to work in China and channeling technology back to Chinese companies, potentially undermining Taiwan's industrial lead in semiconductors [3, 4].
Prosecutors have filed charges under Taiwan’s National Security Act and Trade Secrets Act, seeking a seven-year prison sentence for Chen [2, 3, 4]. The Hong Kong co-conspirator was not prosecuted due to death [2, 3, 4].
The Taiwan High Prosecutors Office’s Intellectual Property Branch called this the island’s first case involving theft of national core technology secrets intended for use in China [3]. A spokesperson said, "Although the attempt to transfer the technology to China was unsuccessful, the case remains highly significant as the first prosecution under the National Security Act involving an alleged attempt to leak Taiwan's national core technologies to China." [4]
Chen’s indictment was announced on July 20, 2026, marking a milestone in Taiwan’s efforts to protect strategic technologies through legal action [2, 3].
