Reported By Lee, Chen-Li（Daniel）李振麟
TSMC has officially filed a lawsuit against former Senior Vice President Weiren Lo, who left the company and later joined Intel. The company accuses Lo of taking confidential 2-nanometer trade secrets with him and potentially transferring them to Intel.
Intel, however, issued an official statement soon afterward, asserting that there is no evidence indicating Lo engaged in any misconduct and emphasizing that the company remains open and supportive of his return.
TSMC Raises Concerns Over Trade-Secret Leakage and Says Legal Action Is Necessary
In its earlier statement, TSMC said that during his tenure, Lo had access to critical information related to 2-nanometer process technology. After his resignation, he immediately joined Intel, raising substantial concerns that he may have used, disclosed, transferred, or passed on TSMC’s trade secrets or confidential information to a competitor.
To protect its core technologies and business interests, TSMC stated that taking legal action including seeking damages for breach of contract — is both necessary and justified.
Intel Responds After Several Days of Silence: No Evidence Supports the Allegations
Intel said in its latest statement that the company has long maintained strict compliance and governance policies that explicitly prohibit the use or transfer of any third-party confidential information or intellectual property. Employees are required to follow all contractual and ethical obligations without exception.
Intel emphasized that based on all information currently available to the company, there is no reason to believe that Lo engaged in any of the misconduct alleged by external parties.
Intel also noted that the movement of semiconductor professionals between companies has been a driving force of innovation and technological progress within the industry. Talent mobility is both common and healthy across the global semiconductor ecosystem, and this case should not be treated as an exception.
Intel Praises Lo’s Track Record and Says It Welcomes the Veteran Engineering Leader Back
Intel stated that under the leadership of CEO Pat Gelsinger, the company is reshaping its engineering-first culture with a focus on:
Strengthening x86 architecture capabilities
Advancing U.S. semiconductor foundry services
Accelerating artificial-intelligence strategies
Intel noted that Lo’s return would contribute meaningfully to these ongoing transformation efforts.
Before joining TSMC, Lo worked at Intel for 18 years, primarily focusing on the development of advanced process technologies. He later joined TSMC to continue his work in wafer-fabrication R&D.
Intel’s statement repeatedly highlighted Lo’s integrity, leadership, and technical expertise, describing him as a highly respected figure in the semiconductor industry — and affirming that the company warmly welcomes him back.
