South Korean authorities reported this week that two former Samsung executives have been arrested for allegedly assisting China in building a chip factory using stolen Samsung technology.
One of the arrested individuals, a 66-year-old named Choi, was reportedly involved with a 60-year-old named Oh. Oh, who had been a senior researcher at Samsung, was recruited to design the Chinese factory.
Choi, a former Samsung Electronics executive, is now the CEO of Chinese tech firm Chengdu Gaozhen, while Oh serves as the head of process design at the firm, according to Business Korea.
Last week, Reuters reported that a former Samsung executive with the surname Choi had been detained by police and was being held as a potential flight risk.
Choi and Oh are accused of collaborating with Chinese government agents to recruit South Koreans with expertise in semiconductors. In 2020, Choi established a chip company, likely Chengdu Gaozhen, with a local Chinese government entity.
Choi and Oh are alleged to have assisted China in developing and producing 20-nanometer DRAM chips, according to Yonhap. The police claim that their actions have led to the theft and leak of Samsung technology valued at over $3.2 billion.
South Korean police have accused the former Samsung employees of damaging Korea’s “competitiveness” amid what they describe as a “global chip war.”
Korean authorities have been investigating this issue on a broader scale for years. In 2018, they charged nine individuals for allegedly selling Samsung display technology to China.
Last year, seven former Samsung employees were convicted of stealing chip industry trade secrets and providing them to China. PCMag has contacted Samsung for comment.
Since 2022, the U.S. has restricted the shipment of advanced chips to China. However, various loopholes have been exploited to bypass the ban, allowing chips from U.S. companies like Nvidia to still enter the country.
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