Xiaolang Zhang, the former Apple employee who pleaded guilty to stealing information about the development of the company's self-driving vehicle, has been sentenced to 120 days in prison followed by a three-year supervised release.
Zhang resigned from Apple following a paternity leave and a trip to China, telling the iPhonemaker that he was going to work in the country for XPeng Motors. That reportedly triggered an investigation, since XPeng is also working on autonomous driving technology, which revealed that Zhang was caught on CCTV taking hardware from Apple's labs and transferring files to his wife's computer.
6 months is not long enough.
This is stealing trade secrets, then fleeing to a country that doesn't give a shit about that.
I’ll agree with you when a corporation is jailed for life when an employee or consumer of their product dies. Until then, this is simple theft and should be financially punished.
stealing * information*
Nobody was harmed; nobody was deprived of life, limb, security, or physical property or currency. Knowledge was transferred without authorization, meaning that only the potential reduction of future profits for a corporation is at stake. It's a breach of contract - about the least impactful thing that a human can do to non-human. This kind of crime should never result in prison, or else it should be applied to every knowledge worker, ceo, or vc who remembers any part of any business they've every been involved with in the past (which it never is).
Huh? No. Read the article, they literally stole hardware.
That reportedly triggered an investigation […] which revealed that Zhang was caught on CCTV taking hardware from Apple's labs and transferring files to his wife's computer.
Emphasis mine.
Not to mention, it would be one thing to do this between American companies, but taking it to a Chinese company, and in China no less, likely has other serious implications.
Nice redirect - this is not about the theft of hardware but the divulging of [checks Republican notecard] Super Important Information (but not important enough to patent, or so simple as to not be patentable) that was given to [Checks skin color card] those theiving, IP stealing, red communist Chinese.
I hope your corporate masters give you a pat on the head and an extra Milk Bone tonight. You've worked hard for it.