Trending 
Apple Inc. has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, accusing the artificial intelligence company of orchestrating a coordinated effort to steal its trade secrets as it seeks to expand into consumer hardware.
Filed in a court in San Jose, California, the lawsuit alleges that OpenAI systematically recruited Apple employees to obtain confidential information about unreleased products, technologies, and internal processes for use in developing its own hardware devices.
The legal action marks a sharp escalation in the dispute between the two companies, which partnered in 2024 to integrate ChatGPT into Apple’s products.
However, that relationship has since deteriorated. Bloomberg reported in May that OpenAI was considering legal action against Apple, alleging the iPhone maker failed to sufficiently promote the ChatGPT integration.
In the 41-page complaint, Apple alleged that OpenAI, “at every level, from members of its Technical Staff to its Chief Hardware Officer, and in coordination with business partners,” had stolen its confidential information and trade secrets.
In a statement seen by AFP, Apple said, “Significant evidence has emerged suggesting individuals employed by OpenAI wrongfully took Apple’s secret and confidential information regarding our unreleased technologies, processes and products.”
“We will always defend our teams’ hard work and innovations, and we are taking all appropriate steps to do so,” the company added.
AFP reported that OpenAI did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The lawsuit names OpenAI, its hardware subsidiary io Products, co-founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive, as well as OpenAI’s chief hardware officer, Tang Yew Tan, and engineer Chang Liu, both former Apple employees.
Apple is seeking damages and a court order barring OpenAI from using its confidential information, arguing that legal action became necessary after OpenAI allegedly failed to address concerns it raised in February.
According to the complaint, Tan, who spent 24 years at Apple before co-founding io Products, allegedly used confidential Apple project code names during job interviews to solicit information about unreleased products.
Apple also claimed Tan encouraged prospective hires to bring physical components, including batteries and circuit boards, to interviews for “show and tell” sessions.
The company further alleged that around 400 OpenAI employees are former Apple staff and described its findings as only “the tip of the iceberg,” arguing that OpenAI’s hardware ambitions were built on the unlawful use of Apple’s proprietary information.
