LISTEN TO ARTICLE 4:21 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Share Tweet Post Email 
 
 A former Apple Inc. engineer was arrested on charges of stealing driverless car secrets for a Chinese startup after he passed through the security checkpoint at San Jose International Airport to board a flight to China. 
 
 Zhang Xiaolang was accused by U.S. prosecutors of downloading files containing proprietary information as he prepared to leave the iPhone maker in April and start work for Guangzhou-based Xiaopeng Motors. according to a criminal complaint filed Monday in federal court in San Jose, California. 
 
 A hardware engineer for Apple’s autonomous vehicle development team, Zhang was granted access to confidential company databases, according to the complaint. After he took paternity leave he told Apple in April he was moving back to China to work at Xmotors. Apple grew more suspicious after seeing his increased network activity and visits to the office before he resigned, according to the complaint. 
 
 Zhang admitted to the Federal Bureau of Investigation that he downloaded Apple driverless technology files to his wife’s laptop to have continued access to them, according to the complaint. He was arrested July 7. 
 
 XMotors has always strictly abided by the laws of China and the U.S. and takes protection of intellectual property rights seriously, Isabel Jiang, an XMotors spokeswoman, said in a statement. 
 
 “There is no indication that he has ever communicated any sensitive information from Apple to XMotors,” Jiang said of Zhang. When notified in late June that U.S. authorities were investigating Zhang, his computer and office equipment was secured and he was denied access to his work, she said. He was subsequently fired, she said. 
 
 The charges against Zhang echo civil claims that Waymo, Alphabet Inc.’s driverless unit, leveled against Uber Technologies Inc. and engineer Anthony Levandowski. While the lawsuit settled, a criminal investigation of Levandowski’s alleged trade secret theft from Google remains unresolved. 
 
 Waymo-Uber Trial Puts Spotlight on Tech’s Age-Old Talent War 
 
 The U.S. Treasury Department plans to heighten scrutiny of Chinese investments in sensitive U.S. industries under an emergency law. The crackdown is aimed at China’s investment in new-energy vehicles, robotics and aerospace, interests the Trump administration has viewed as a threat to economic and national security, according to people familiar with the plans. 
 
 Apple’s self-driving car project is a rare initiative by the company that has played out in the public eye over the past few years. In 2015, Apple executives approved a plan to build a self-driving, electric vehicle to take on Tesla Inc. and the Detroit auto industry. Apple hired more than 1,000 engineers. 
 
 However, about two years ago, Apple scaled back its plans to build a physical vehicle and has since had a team working on the underlying self-driving software and sensor technology. The self-driving space is exceptionally competitive, with dozens of companies across the world trying to take the lead in the burgeoning field. 
 
 Apple has dozens of cars equipped with its software on the road today, but it’s still unclear how Apple’s reliability stacks up against other industry titans like Uber Technologies Inc. and Google’s Waymo division. Apple plans to use its robocar technology on special Volkswagen vans to transport employees between offices. Apple hasn’t said how or if it will eventually release its technology to consumers. 
 
 About 5,000 of Apple’s more than 135,000 full-time employees are disclosed on the car project. Out of those, roughly 2,700 workers have access to one or more Apple databases containing information about the project, according to the complaint. 
 
 The majority of Zhang’s network activity “consisted of both bulk searches and targeted downloading copious pages of information from the various confidential database applications,” according to the complaint. Prosecutors accuse him of downloading engineering schematics, and technical manuals and reports. 
 
 “Apple takes confidentiality and the protection of our intellectual property very seriously,” company spokesman Tom Neumayr said in an email. “We’re working with authorities on this matter and will do everything possible to make sure this individual and any other individuals involved are held accountable for their actions.” 
 
 Tamara Crepet, a federal public defender who is initially representing Zhang, didn’t immediately respond to a phone call seeking comment. 
 
 The case is U.S.A. v. Zhang, 18-cr-70919, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Jose). ||||| Please enable cookies on your web browser in order to continue. 
 
 The new European data protection law requires us to inform you of the following before you use our website: 
 
 We use cookies and other technologies to customize your experience, perform analytics and deliver personalized advertising on our sites, apps and newsletters and across the Internet based on your interests. By clicking “I agree” below, you consent to the use by us and our third-party partners of cookies and data gathered from your use of our platforms. See our Privacy Policy and Third Party Partners to learn more about the use of data and your rights. You also agree to our Terms of Service.
– A former Apple engineer was arrested as he was about to board a flight from San Jose to China Saturday, accused by US prosecutors of stealing tech secrets from the firm with the plan of passing them along to a Chinese startup, the Washington Post reports. Zhang Xiaolang, once a hardware engineer for Apple's driverless car development team, told the company in April that he was leaving to go back to China and work at Xiaopeng Motors or XMotors, which is also developing autonomous vehicles. But Apple became suspicious when his level of network activity "increased exponentially" before his resignation, and officials say he ultimately admitted downloading self-driving car technology files to his wife's laptop. Prosecutors say those files included engineering schematics as well as technical manuals and reports. Zhang was also caught on surveillance video entering the software and hardware labs of the autonomous vehicle department and leaving with a large box. An XMotors spokesperson says the firm has always abided by the law and notes, "There is no indication that he has ever communicated any sensitive information from Apple to XMotors." Zhang's access to his work at XMotors was denied and his computer and other equipment were secured after US authorities notified the company they were investigating him; he was ultimately fired. Apple's work on self-driving cars is extremely secretive; just 2,700 "core" employees have access to the project's databases. Operating under an emergency law, the US Treasury Department plans to increase scrutiny of Chinese investment in US industries including new-energy vehicles, robotics, and aerospace, sources tell Bloomberg.