Taiwan Detains Three TSMC Employees for Alleged Data Theft

(MENAFN) Authorities in Taiwan have detained three employees of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) over allegations they stole sensitive trade secrets tied to the firm’s cutting-edge 2-nanometer chip technology.

According to media, the investigation began after TSMC detected suspicious activity involving unauthorized access to confidential internal documents. This led to concerns that critical technological information had been illicitly obtained by the trio.

The semiconductor giant promptly alerted local prosecutors, triggering a series of searches and arrests carried out between July 25 and 28.

Under Taiwan’s National Security Act, it is illegal to leak or share trade secrets classified as national core technologies with foreign or adversarial entities without proper clearance.

This case marks the first known breach involving TSMC’s 2nm process node. Prosecutors are now delving into the suspects’ possible intentions and assessing the risk of future leaks.

The timing of the alleged theft comes as U.S. President Donald Trump made a bold claim Tuesday regarding TSMC’s U.S. expansion, suggesting the company could pour $300 billion into its Arizona operations—nearly double the investment previously disclosed.

“Taiwan is coming over and spending 300 billion dollars in Arizona building the biggest plant in the world for chips and semiconductors,” Trump said during an interview with a news agency.

TSMC has not verified Trump’s assertion, and shares in the company dipped on Wednesday in response to the uncertainty.

Back in March, the chipmaker announced plans to grow its U.S. footprint, stating it would “expand its investment in the United States to $165 billion to power the future of AI,” despite unresolved trade issues between Taipei and Washington.

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