A former ASML Holding NV employee who later worked for Huawei Technologies Co. has been accused of stealing data from the maker of the world's most advanced chipmaking equipment, Dutch newspaper NRC reported. ASML said in February that a former employee in China had stolen its technical data, but did not disclose further details.
The former worker stole data from the company's software system used to store technical information on machines, Bloomberg reported earlier this year.
The move comes as the United States seeks to deny China access to semiconductor technology that could give it a military advantage. It's the latest incident in the escalating trade war, with Huawei being targeted over concerns about its ties to the Chinese government.
According to the NRC, citing unnamed sources, the former employee worked for Huawei for a period of time after abruptly leaving ASML last year. ASML declined to comment.
It was unclear whether the person still worked for Huawei, and a Huawei spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
People familiar with the company's investigation told Bloomberg that the individual lives in China and was identified as having potential ties to a Chinese state-sponsored entity and stealing data on its behalf. The entity has been previously linked to intellectual property theft, the person said, without providing a name for the group itself.
ASML occupies a pivotal position in the global chip supply chain. It has a monopoly on advanced extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography systems that are essential for producing the world's most cutting-edge chips, and it also supplies the deep-UV lithography machines needed to make more mature semiconductors.
Huawei quietly launched a new smartphone in August powered by an advanced 7nm processor. A teardown of the device revealed that the chip was produced by a Chinese company, suggesting that its manufacturing capabilities are far beyond what the U.S. is trying to block its progress.
The achievement casts doubt on Washington's ability to thwart Beijing's technology ambitions and stoked political pressure on the Biden administration to impose more sanctions on Huawei and its chipmaking partner SMIC, one of ASML's biggest customers in China.
access:
Jingdong Mall