Corporate Espionage, Chinese Style
Commentary
Some consider the very first case of international industrial spying to be the 18th-century letters of the missionary superior general of the French Jesuits, François-Xavier d’Entrecolles, describing the manufacture of the exquisite porcelain of Jingdezhen in southeast China, where what are recognized as the finest ceramics in the world trace their origins to the sixth century. It would not be long before d’Entrecolles and his fellow priests, despite a long tenure dating back to 1579, would be cast out by the imperial Chinese.
In the 21st century, the Lazy Susans—or cānzhuō zhuànpán, as they are called in restaurants in mainland China—have turned, as in the case of former Apple software engineer Weibao Wang. The Department of Justice announced on May 16 that it has charged Wang with six counts pertaining to stealing Apple technology and providing it to a Chinese smart car company. Wang is the third ex-employee of Apple charged with stealing trade secrets from the global tech giant….