JAKARTA - Apple has sued OpenAI for alleged trade secret theft and breach of contract. The iPhone manufacturer accused OpenAI's hiring process of being used to dig up information about Apple's unannounced products, designs, and technologies.
Quoted from a report by TechCrunch, Saturday, July 11, the lawsuit was filed a day earlier to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Apple considers the case not a separate action, but rather part of a pattern involving a number of former employees and allegedly directed by senior OpenAI leaders.
One of the names mentioned is OpenAI Hardware Chief Tang Tan. Before moving, Tan worked for 24 years at Apple and most recently served as vice president of iPhone and Apple Watch product design.
Apple accused Tan of using the company's secret project code name during the OpenAI recruitment process. He was also said to have asked applicants to bring Apple hardware components during interviews, looking for details of unannounced products, and teaching outgoing employees how to avoid security procedures.
The lawsuit comes as OpenAI is reportedly expanding its hardware ambitions. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo in April predicted the company could prepare a smartphone that relies on an AI agent, an artificial intelligence system that can perform tasks for users without relying on regular applications.
If the news is true, the device has the potential to challenge Apple's main business which is based on the iPhone.
OpenAI previously acquired io, a hardware startup owned by former Apple chief designer Jony Ive, for $6.5 billion. io is mentioned in the lawsuit, while Jony Ive's name is not listed.
Apple also accused its former senior electrical systems engineer, Chang Liu, of taking confidential information when he moved to OpenAI in 2026. Liu worked for eight years at Apple.
According to the lawsuit, Liu did not return the company's laptop after leaving. The computer is suspected of being used to download technical documents containing specifications, technical presentation materials, project data, as well as information about technologies and products that have not yet been introduced.
Liu is also accused of sharing confidential information with other Apple employees who applied to OpenAI. He is said to have told at least one applicant about the material that needed to be learned before the interview.
Apple said it sent a letter to OpenAI in February to convey its concerns, but received no response.
In the lawsuit, Apple assessed the actions of its former employees as part of OpenAI's efforts to obtain confidential company information. Applicants are said to have been asked to bring designs and prototypes, then answer questions about component selection and suppliers.
Apple's internal investigation is also said to have found alleged use of confidential information by OpenAI and its partners in the development of hardware.
One example is a special technique for giving a coating and final appearance to metal surfaces. OpenAI is accused of using the technique after allegedly making a partner believe that Apple's permission had been obtained.
Apple asked the court to prohibit OpenAI from using or disclosing its trade secrets. The company also asked for all confidential materials to be returned and evidence related to the case to be kept.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg," Apple's lawsuit reads.
In the same lawsuit, Apple accused OpenAI's hardware business of being built by exploiting trade secrets that it allegedly misused.
In a written statement, Apple said protection of the work and intellectual property of its teams was a serious matter.
"Recently, there has been important evidence that shows that a number of people working at OpenAI have illegally taken Apple's confidential and closed information regarding technologies, processes, and products that we have not launched," Apple said, quoted by TechCrunch.
After the TechCrunch article was published, OpenAI responded to the allegations by referring to its public statement on X.
"We are not interested in trade secrets of other companies. We remain focused on building innovative technology that empowers people around the world," OpenAI said.
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