Major computer chip equipment maker ASML says a former employee in China stole information about its technology.
The Dutch company says it has now reported the breach to authorities in the Netherlands and the US.
However, the company added that it “does not believe the embezzlement is material to our business.”
ASML is one of the most important companies in the global microchip supply chain. It makes machines that produce the world’s most advanced chips.
Chips, or semiconductors, that power everything from cellphones to military hardware are at the center of a bitter dispute between the US and China.
“We witnessed the unauthorized misappropriation of data related to proprietary technology by a (now) former employee in China,” ASML said in its most recent annual report.
“As a result of the security incident, certain export control regulations may have been violated. In light of this incident, we are taking additional remedial action,” it added.
ASML did not provide any further information about the employee or the technology involved. The company did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment.
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment.
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This is not the first time ASML has linked intellectual property (IP) infringement to China.
In its 2021 annual report, the company said it was aware of reports that a Chinese semiconductor equipment and software maker, DongFang JingYuan Electron, “is actively marketing products in China that may potentially infringe ASML’s IP rights.”
DongFang JingYuan Electron denied the allegations.
At the time, the Beijing-based company said the reports were “inconsistent with the facts.”
“We reserve the right to take further legal action against the relevant false information,” she added.
Large companies in the semiconductor industry were confronted with export restrictions to China.
In October, Washington announced it would require licenses for companies that export chips containing US tools or software to China, regardless of where in the world they are made.
The US has pushed the Netherlands and Japan to introduce similar restrictions.
Since 2019, the Dutch government has prevented ASML from selling its most advanced lithography machines to China.
Lithography machines use lasers to print tiny patterns on silicon as part of the microchip manufacturing process.
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