Beyond Ex-VP Lo, Intel Is Reportedly Poaching TSMC Arizona Engineers With 20–30% Higher Salaries

[Fred Chen]

Former TSMC senior vice president Wei-Jen Lo’s move to Intel—along with allegations that he took sub-2nm documents—has now sparked reports that Intel is also trying to recruit TSMC engineers in Arizona. According to Liberty Times, sources say Intel has recently been aggressively poaching engineers from TSMC’s Arizona fab. Compared with TSMC, Intel is reportedly offering salaries that are 20–30% higher while providing a workload that is roughly half as heavy, successfully attracting some U.S. engineers to switch over.

The Arizona location carries particular significance, as both companies are producing their advanced technologies there. Intel is building its leading-edge 18A chips in Arizona, with the company announcing that Panther Lake will enter high-volume production at its newest Arizona fab later this year. TSMC, meanwhile, is manufacturing NVIDIA’s Blackwell wafers at its Arizona site.

Regarding the current status of Lo’s case, UDN News notes that TSMC has publicly stated it has filed a related lawsuit against Lo with the Intellectual Property and Commercial Court. The court confirmed that it has received TSMC’s application for a provisional injunction. The scope of TSMC’s request covers the employment contract between TSMC and Lo, as well as the non-compete agreement and trade-secret obligations he signed during his tenure. The purpose of the injunction is to prevent Lo and Intel from taking any further actions, UDN News notes.

However, Tom’s Hardware points out that it remains unclear how TSMC could enforce such a court decision in the U.S. or compel Lo to leave Intel.

Meanwhile, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan addressed the situation last Thursday while attending the Semiconductor Industry Association Awards in San Jose. According to Bloomberg, Tan dismissed the allegations as rumor and speculation, emphasizing that the company respects intellectual property.

[News] Beyond Ex-VP Lo, Intel Is Reportedly Poaching TSMC Arizona Engineers With 20–30% Higher Salaries

Former TSMC senior vice president Wei-Jen Lo’s move to Intel—along with allegations that he took sub-2nm documents—has now sparked reports that Intel ...

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[Fred Chen]

"Compared with TSMC, Intel is reportedly offering salaries that are 20–30% higher while providing a workload that is roughly half as heavy, successfully attracting some U.S. engineers to switch over."

The mention of workload difference caught my eye. If it's true, it says more about the difference between Intel and TSMC.

 

[siliconbruh999]

"Compared with TSMC, Intel is reportedly offering salaries that are 20–30% higher while providing a workload that is roughly half as heavy, successfully attracting some U.S. engineers to switch over."

The mention of workload difference caught my eye. If it's true, it says more about the difference between Intel and TSMC.

There is a different work culture between TSMC/Intel kind of expected.

 

[lilo777]

"Compared with TSMC, Intel is reportedly offering salaries that are 20–30% higher while providing a workload that is roughly half as heavy, successfully attracting some U.S. engineers to switch over."

The mention of workload difference caught my eye. If it's true, it says more about the difference between Intel and TSMC.

I think "reportedly" is the key here. We are not talking about the particularly creative jobs here. It's basically 40 work hours per week jobs. In this case, only moron would work more for 30% less.

 

[Fred Chen]

I think "reportedly" is the key here. We are not talking about the particularly creative jobs here. It's basically 40 work hours per week jobs. In this case, only moron would work more for 30% less.

There is a different work culture between TSMC/Intel kind of expected.

Such a big workload difference, if true, could correlate to the amount of business the respective companies are handling. Or else, one company is simply slacking .