Authorities in Taiwan claim a Chinese supplier for Apple has been operating illegally on the island – and trying to poach tech talent.

Taiwan, which is home to the world’s top chipmaker TSMC and other world-class chip firms, has intensified efforts to stop illegal activities by Chinese firms to steal know-how and poach well-trained workers.

Late on Thursday Ministry of Justice investigators named Luxshare Precision Industry as one of eight Chinese companies “that came to Taiwan to illegally engage in the poaching of our high-tech talents.”

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Luxshare did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The investigation bureau named video surveillance equipment maker Zhejiang Dahua Technology, which the United States added to a blacklist in 2019 over Beijing’s treatment of Muslim minorities in the far western Chinese region of Xinjiang.

Zhejiang Dahua set up “two private locations” in Taiwan and tried to circumvent investigation by listing its employees as working for another company, the bureau said, also without giving details.

Zhejiang Dahua did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory and accounts for the majority of the world’s most advanced semiconductor manufacturing capacity, sees Beijing’s efforts as a threat to its chip expertise.

“The facilitators of relevant mainland China companies in Taiwan should not be under any illusions and challenge the determination to enforce the law,” the bureau said, adding it would “resolutely crack down on illegal business operations and the poaching of talent”.

Thursday’s announcement was the result of a sweep this month of suspected illegal operations by Chinese tech companies.

In 2022, Taiwanese prosecutors accused Luxshare of stealing commercial secrets from a Taiwanese competitor, Catcher Technology, and poaching its workforce to win orders from Apple, saying it had charged 14 people.

• Reuters with additional editing by Jim Pollard

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Jim Pollard

Jim Pollard is an Australian journalist based in Thailand since 1999. He worked for News Ltd papers in Sydney, Perth, London and Melbourne before travelling through SE Asia in the late 90s. He was a senior editor at The Nation for 17+ years.