Taiwan court hands down jail terms in TSMC trade secrets case

play Live Sign upShow navigation menu.css-15ru6p1{font-size:inherit;font-weight:normal;}Navigation menuNewsShow more news sectionsAfricaAsiaUS & CanadaLatin AmericaEuropeAsia PacificMiddle EastExplainedOpinionSportVideoMoreShow more sectionsFeaturesEconomyHuman RightsClimate CrisisInvestigationsInteractivesIn PicturesScience & TechnologyPodcastsTravelplay Live Click here to searchsearchSign upNavigation menucaret-leftTrendingUS-Israel war on IranDonald TrumpTracking Israel's ceasefire violationsRussia-Ukraine warcaret-rightEconomy|TechnologyTaiwan court hands down jail terms in TSMC trade secrets caseEx-Tokyo Electron employee sentenced to 10 years, with four other defendants getting between 10 months and six years. xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on GoogleinfoChen Wei-chieh, a former TSMC employee, arrives at the Intellectual Property and Commercial Court for a verdict in a trade secrets case involving Tokyo Electron's Taiwan unit in New Taipei City, Taiwan, on April 27, 2026 [Ann Wang/Reuters]By ReutersPublished On 27 Apr 202627 Apr 2026A court in Taiwan has fined the local unit of Japan’s Tokyo Electron $5m, and sentenced five defendants to jail terms of up to 10 years, in a high-profile trade secrets case involving chipmaker TSMC. The ruling follows one of Taiwan’s most prominent cases related to the island’s core technologies, involving the alleged theft of TSMC’s sensitive computer chip technology and charges under the National Security Act. In August 2025, prosecutors indicted Chen Li-ming, a former TSMC and Tokyo Electron employee, on suspicion of unlawfully obtaining trade secrets, along with other defendants, in a bid to help Tokyo Electron win more equipment orders from TSMC. Chen was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with three other former employees of the world’s largest contract manufacturer of advanced AI chips receiving terms ranging from two to six years. The court in Taipei’s sister city of New Taipei also gave a former Tokyo Electron employee a 10-month sentence, suspended for three years. Tokyo Electron and TSMC did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Advertisement AboutAboutShow moreAbout UsCode of EthicsTerms and ConditionsEU/EEA Regulatory NoticePrivacy PolicyCookie PolicyCookie PreferencesAccessibility StatementSitemapWork for usConnectConnectShow moreContact UsUser Accounts HelpAdvertise with usStay ConnectedNewslettersChannel FinderTV SchedulePodcastsSubmit a TipPaid Partner ContentOur ChannelsOur ChannelsShow moreAl Jazeera ArabicAl Jazeera EnglishAl Jazeera Investigative UnitAl Jazeera MubasherAl Jazeera DocumentaryAl Jazeera BalkansAJ+Our NetworkOur NetworkShow moreAl Jazeera Centre for StudiesAl Jazeera Media InstituteLearn ArabicAl Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human RightsAl Jazeera ForumAl Jazeera Hotel PartnersFollow Al Jazeera English: