Taiwanese prosecutors have also issued a high profile arrest warrant to CEO of Oneplus, Pete Lau, on grounds of secret recruitment activities that were tapping in on local engineering talents.
This act of enforcement highlights the increased curiosity of Beijing in the technological superiority of Taiwan as cross strait tensions continue to rise, and the seeking of greater geopolitical interests that define the innovation environment of the region.
The Charges Unfold
The Shilin District Prosecutors Office issued an indictment against two Taiwanese nationals in support of the illicit acts that Lau dated back in 2014.
The so-called aid entailed hiring over seventy engineers in smartphone software research, development, testing and validation which violated Taiwan Cross-Strait act that designated that Chinese companies could not be involved in illegal recruitment.
The prosecutors attribute that Oneplus had done this by concealing such operations under a Hong Kong shell firm and a 2015 subsidiary firm in Taiwan, thus contravening the regulatory measures meant to withhold confidential technology data.
Talent War Heats Up
The Semiconductor strength of Taiwan keeps on attracting Chinese companies like moths to a flame. In August 2025, researchers analyzed 16 Chinese firms on their attempts to acquire high-tech talent.
These companies operated in Taiwan without approval from our authorities, illegally conducting business and poaching our high-tech talent.
said Ya-Chun Ku, one of the investigators.
We will continue to pursue such cases to prevent Chinese firms from unlawfully recruiting talent or operating in Taiwan, and to effectively safeguard Taiwan’s global advantage in the high-tech industry.
she added Oneplus, a Shenzhen-based subsidiary of Oppo since 2021, now participates in the competition with the industry giants like Huawei in this secret game, hiring candidates via agencies or fake companies to avoid the prohibitive policies.
Expert Take
Taiwan’s Shilin District Prosecutors Office announced in a document that the allegations are made under Taiwanese law, which governs relations with China.
it had indicted two Taiwanese citizens for assisting OnePlus CEO Pete Lau in illegally operating a business and recruiting more than 70 employees in Taiwan.
What’s Next ?
Not a single statement has been made by Oppo, OnePlus, or Lau; however, the blowback is still significant. Strategic analysis indicates that the act of Beijing doing so in terms of talent might prompt reactive responses which would slow the 7nm development of the chip in China and give Taiwan its moat.
The future of the court cases would either put Lau behind bars, or force Oneplus to bow out of the business, thus restructuring the smartphone industry of the Asian region, money.
