Employee of chip equipment giant ASML accused of stealing company secrets went to Huawei: report
- A former China-based ASML employee accused of misappropriating company data later moved to Huawei, according to a Dutch news report
- The chip in Huawei’s new Mate 60 Pro smartphone is believed to be made using a DUV machine rather than ASML’s more advanced EUV machine
A former employee of ASML Holding accused of stealing trade secrets from the manufacturer of the world’s most advanced semiconductor-making equipment, later worked for Huawei Technologies, according to a Dutch media report.
On Monday, Dutch newspaper NRC reported that the perpetrator went on to work for US-sanctioned Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei after leaving ASML, citing unnamed sources.
ASML and Huawei did not immediately respond to an inquiry from the Post.
The Dutch company said in February that it had reported the breach to authorities and implemented remedial measures in response, adding that it believed the breach would not have any material impact to its business.
Since landing on the US government’s so-called Entity List in 2019, Huawei has been barred from accessing advanced chip technology that uses US components, forcing major contract chip maker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) to stop accepting new orders from the mainland giant.
TSMC is a customer of ASML, which has a near monopoly position in the production of the world’s most advanced extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines, used in producing leading-edge chips.
Since 2019, ASML has stopped exporting those machines to mainland China.
Huawei in August quietly released a 5G-capable smartphone, the Mate 60 Pro, which contains an advanced 7-nanometre processor. While the achievement has been hailed domestically as proof that China can make technological breakthroughs despite US sanctions, the chip was believed to be made using DUV rather than EUV machines.
EUV machines are currently necessary for producing 7-nm chips or below in a commercially-viable way.
Amid heightened geopolitical tensions, ASML and other chip-related companies have previously accused Chinese entities of intellectual property (IP) theft and talent poaching.