Taiwan raids former TSMC exec's home in trade secrets probe

By Wen-Yee Lee and Ben Blanchard

TAIPEI, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Taiwan prosecutors said on Thursday investigators had raided the homes of a former senior TSMC executive and seized computers after the company accused him of leaking trade secrets, something his current employer Intel INTC.O has denied.

TSMC 2330.TW, the world's largest contract chipmaker and major supplier to companies including Nvidia NVDA.O, said on Tuesday it had filed a lawsuit in Taiwan's Intellectual Property and Commercial Court against Wei-Jen Lo, its former senior vice president.

In a statement, the Taiwan prosecutors' intellectual property branch said Lo is suspected of violating Taiwan's National Security Act.

On Wednesday afternoon investigators, acting on a search warrant, searched two of Lo's homes, seizing computers, USB drives and other evidence, prosecutors said.

A court also approved a petition to seize his shares and real estate, the statement added.

Lo and Intel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Earlier on Thursday, Intel denied TSMC's allegations.

"Based on everything we know, we have no reason to believe there is any merit to the allegations involving Mr Lo," Intel said in an emailed statement.

Intel said the company maintains rigorous policies and controls that strictly prohibit the use or transfer of any third-party confidential information or intellectual property.

"We take these commitments seriously," Intel said.

The U.S. chipmaker said it has welcomed back Lo and that he is widely respected across the semiconductor industry for his integrity, leadership and technical expertise. "Talent movement across companies is a common and healthy part of our industry, and this situation is no different," the company added.

Lo, who helped drive TSMC's mass production of cutting-edge 5-nanometre, 3-nm and 2-nm chips, joined Intel in October after retiring from TSMC following a 21-year-long career there.

Before joining TSMC in 2004, Lo worked at Intel for 18 years.

TSMC had said in a statement that "there is a high probability that Lo uses, leaks, discloses or transfers TSMC's trade secrets and confidential information to Intel, thus making legal actions necessary".