WSJ: Huawei poaching talent at German ASML suppliers

Headhunters from Huawei have been bombarding key employees from Trumpf and Zeiss SMT with job offers, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Although no one has jumped ship, the offensive triggered an investigation by German authorities, who are fearful of intellectual-property leaks. ASML, the most important customer of both German firms and part owner of Zeiss SMT, says it hasn’t noticed any unusual recruitment activity lately.

Incidents such as these are forcing the West to consider additional protective measures. Taiwan already has strict rules on foreign recruiting: anyone found guilty of leaking technology critical to national security faces up to 12 years in prison. South Korea, too, is enforcing stricter rules on IP transfer via people. European and US tech job markets, by contrast, are generally still open to Chinese recruiters.