Mutual Accusations in Trade Secret Lawsuit Between Apple and OpenAI

In a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit filed by Apple against OpenAI—alleging that former Apple employees leaked confidential technologies and product details—OpenAI has rejected the claims, dismissing them as "baseless and personal." According to Reuters, Apple has requested a preliminary injunction during the legal proceedings to block the individuals in question and OpenAI from accessing the sensitive information. In response, OpenAI issued a strong rebuttal supported by documents and correspondence.

Background of the Lawsuit and Allegations

At the center of Apple's lawsuit are former iPhone engineer Chang Liu and long-time design executive Tang Tan. Apple claims that these individuals transferred confidential workflows and unreleased product information to OpenAI upon leaving the company.

The court filing alleges that during his departure, Chang Liu failed to return a company-issued laptop, exploited an authentication loophole to access a cloud-based network storage system, and downloaded confidential files. Additionally, the accusations state that Tang Tan solicited confidential information from Apple employees during job interviews.

OpenAI's Defense and Evidence Refuting Claims

Alongside its official court defense, OpenAI responded to the public with a blog post titled "Apple is getting this wrong," stating that Apple's request for an injunction was built on unfounded information.

The company's defense highlights the following points:

• Network Access Claims: It was stated that Chang Liu accessed the system after his departure because Apple employees requested his help, and that this situation stemmed from gaps in Apple's own access management.
• Design Processes: It was emphasized that Tang Tan gave strict instructions to his team explicitly forbidding the use of confidential information from other companies.
• Legal Communication Errors: OpenAI rejected Apple's claim that initial inquiries went unanswered, revealing that Apple's external law firm confused similar surnames and emailed the wrong person—a mistake proven by documentation.

Industry Implications and Key Takeaways

Such intellectual property and employee poaching lawsuits between major tech companies highlight the legal dimension of competition in the AI and hardware development sectors. Personnel mobility, particularly in critical R&D positions, forces companies to more strictly monitor their data security and internal audit mechanisms. Such proceedings signal that tech giants will likely tighten their corporate compliance and information security policies even further in the future.

*This news is based on data published by Webtekno — Artificial Intelligence.