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They aren't stopping anyone else accessing resources or doing anything or holding anyone hostage. Other people and companies are quite free to try and catch up. If they can. They got where they are by being damn good at what they do and satisfying their customers. Not abusing them.
They aren't stopping anyone else accessing resources or doing anything or holding anyone hostage. Other people and companies are quite free to try and catch up. If they can. They got where they are by being damn good at what they do and satisfying their customers. Not abusing them.
Taiwanese government is directly involved in this case. Silicon shield/trying to lock resources within Taiwan, whatever you want to call it, is too obvious.
Let's be clear: we do not know what exactly (if anything) Wei-Jen Lo took from TSMC. As I understand, TSMC was aware of the situation and did not mind it. They filed the lawsuit only after they learned that he joined Intel. The real thing they might be unhappy about is the latter and they might want to prevent him from working for Intel. So we have a situation where TSMC claims there is IP theft and Intel claims there is none. While I have no idea who is right, in general, in the dispute between the US corporate culture and Taiwanese corporate culture I tend to trust US corporation more.
Should we also consider it a betrayal when people changed jobs from Intel to TSM at a time when TSM was in a weaker position? And why would that be considered a betrayal, given that he had worked at Intel for 18 years before joining TSM? I don’t understand the double-standard argument.
He lied during his exit interview and stole IP. That is betrayal not matter what company you work for or what country you live in.
Had he been honest during the exit interview and said something like "I want to finish my career how it started, with Intel" he would have been fine. Now his reputation, everything he has done, will have a stain on it no matter what the jury says years from now.
He lied during his exit interview and stole IP. That is betrayal not matter what company you work for or what country you live in.
Had he been honest during the exit interview and said something like "I want to finish my career how it started, with Intel" he would have been fine. Now his reputation, everything he has done, will have a stain on it no matter what the jury says years from now.
I don’t agree. He acted that way for a reason. If he had been in a U.S. company, I think he would have done as you said. But given that it was TSM and Taiwan, this was how he chose to handle it. It makes sense to me, especially considering the current response. Reputation is defined by one’s ability—such as leading a difficult turnaround—not by accepting other people’s decisions about your career path.
If there is any IP infringement from both sides, then prove it. Otherwise, it is accusation at most. The same logic can be applied to TSM taking trade secrets from Intel given there are quite a few ex Intel employees at TSM.
The Internet and related media has made "innocent until proven guilty" less and less of a thing these days, unfortunately. It looks very suspicious but we don't know for sure what LWJ has done yet regarding IP theft.
Let's be clear: we do not know what exactly (if anything) Wei-Jen Lo took from TSMC. As I understand, TSMC was aware of the situation and did not mind it. They filed the lawsuit only after they learned that he joined Intel. The real thing they might be unhappy about is the latter and they might want to prevent him from working for Intel. So we have a situation where TSMC claims there is IP theft and Intel claims there is none. While I have no idea who is right, in general, in the dispute between the US corporate culture and Taiwanese corporate culture I tend to trust US corporation more.
The TSMC Media Statement is pretty clear on what Wei-Jen Lo did. Had he not lied to the TSMC general counsel during the exit interview he would not be in this mess. And it is most certainly a mess once the lawyers get involved. I can assure you they will find something. Hopefully he did not unseal those 20 boxes of notes he took. Do you think TSMC would have allowed him to take those boxes if they knew he was going to Intel?
I was in a similar situation. I was VP at and EDA company and got an offer from a start-up company. I told the CEO and gave a 30 day notice. He walked me out that day with a copy of the NDA I signed and he even took my rolodex and company journal. Non-competes are not enforceable in California so that was not even an option. Had I lied and took my company notes I would have ended up in court just like Wei-Jen Lo. I did get my rolodex back after it was copied.
The TSMC Media Statement is pretty clear on what Wei-Jen Lo did. Had he not lied to the TSMC general counsel during the exit interview he would not be in this mess. And it is most certainly a mess once the lawyers get involved. I can assure you they will find something. Hopefully he did not unseal those 20 boxes of notes he took. Do you think TSMC would have allowed him to take those boxes if they knew he was going to Intel?
I was in a similar situation. I was VP at and EDA company and got an offer from a start-up company. I told the CEO and gave a 30 day notice. He walked me out that day with a copy of the NDA I signed and he even took my rolodex and company journal. Non-competes are not enforceable in California so that was not even an option. Had I lied and took my company notes I would have ended up in court just like Wei-Jen Lo. I did get my rolodex back after it was copied.
"TSMC Media Statement"? Seriously? We have no idea what exactly he said. As I understand he was (at least in his mind) mistreated by TSMC just before it. Is he supposed to be sincere during interview in this case? Is this a law? What if he indeed wanted to join the university but later got an offer from Intel? Let them fight about this. I am not sure we should care.
I don’t agree. He acted that way for a reason. If he had been in a U.S. company, I think he would have done as you said. But given that it was TSM and Taiwan, this was how he chose to handle it. It makes sense to me, especially considering the current response. Reputation is defined by one’s ability—such as leading a difficult turnaround—not by accepting other people’s decisions about your career path.
If there is any IP infringement from both sides, then prove it. Otherwise, it is accusation at most. The same logic can be applied to TSM taking trade secrets from Intel given there are quite a few ex Intel employees at TSM.
Ridiculous. If you are honest with your employer a proper exit will be made and you will not get sued. I have seen this from both sides many times. One programmer we hired from a competitor brought code with him. That was a fatal mistake for us stock holders.
"TSMC Media Statement"? Seriously? We have no idea what exactly he said. As I understand he was (at least in his mind) mistreated by TSMC just before it. Is he supposed to be sincere during interview in this case? Is this a law? What if he indeed wanted to join the university but later got an offer from Intel? Let them fight about this. I am not sure we should care.
If the media statement is false then it is legally actionable (defamation), which can be a serious liability for a publicly traded company. Especially one that bases its business on trust. TSMC, the trusted foundry, right?
TSMC documents everything. If Wei-Jen Lo had inappropriate meetings there will be a record of it. Those fabs are locked down secure with keycard readers and security all over the place. Lo's admin will know all.
Ridiculous. If you are honest with your employer a proper exit will be made and you will not get sued. I have seen this from both sides many times. One programmer we hired from a competitor brought code with him. That was a fatal mistake for us stock holders.
If the media statement is false then it is legally actionable (defamation), which can be a serious liability for a publicly traded company. Especially one that bases its business on trust. TSMC, the trusted foundry, right?
TSMC documents everything. If Wei-Jen Lo had inappropriate meetings there will be a record of it. Those fabs are locked down secure with keycard readers and security all over the place. Lo's admin will know all.
I think the current legal filing only concerns the non-compete. The “20 boxes” story is mentioned only by media outlets. The question, then, is whether we should take Taiwanese news media seriously, given that they tend to be somewhat exaggerated in their style.
Wrong again. This is about trade secrets which is why TSMC mentioned NDAs:
The lawsuit is based on the terms of Employment Contract between TSMC and Lo, the Non-compete Agreement signed by Lo during his employment, and regulations such as the Trade Secrets Act.
Did Google teach you that? Hsinchu was my second home for 15 years. I am speaking from first hand experience.
Wrong again. This is about trade secrets which is why TSMC mentioned NDAs:
The lawsuit is based on the terms of Employment Contract between TSMC and Lo, the Non-compete Agreement signed by Lo during his employment, and regulations such as the Trade Secrets Act.
It is simple - prove it. Maybe during the process, it would also expose any trade secret leakages from Intel to other companies during self-examination.
It doesn't matter who made the copies if he took them out of the building. Whether he does his own photocopying is beside the point. I note you've implictly agreed that there were copies and boxes here (I really have no idea). This is really basic IP protection stuff that anyone involved in the semi business should understand. Like Dan, I wouldn't knowingly hire anyone who didn't. Most of us have seen enough incidents and near misses to know better.
www.chinatimes.com
en.wikipedia.org
