Apple Sues OpenAI for Trade Secret Theft Related to AI Hardware Development

Jul 10, 2026

Apple files a federal lawsuit against OpenAI on July 10, 2026, alleging the AI firm stole trade secrets to develop competing hardware. The suit names former Apple employees Tang Tan and Chang Liu, accusing them of downloading confidential files and soliciting proprietary information. OpenAI, which acquired Jony Ive's startup io Products for $6.4 billion, denies the allegations. The legal battle highlights intense Silicon Valley talent wars as companies race to build next-generation AI devices.

Apple lawsuit against OpenAI

▪Apple seeks damages, injunctive relief, and a court order blocking OpenAI from using its trade secrets or requiring product redesigns.
▪The lawsuit names former Apple employees Tang Tan and Chang Liu as defendants, accusing them of transferring confidential hardware files and supplier information to OpenAI.
▪Apple alleges that OpenAI hardware chief Tang Tan instructed job candidates to bring actual Apple hardware parts to interviews for information-gathering sessions.
▪Apple alleges that former engineer Chang Liu used an authentication bug to download confidential hardware files and failed to return a work-issued laptop.
▪Apple filed a lawsuit against OpenAI on July 10, 2026, in California federal court, alleging trade secret theft and breach of contract to develop competing hardware.

Jony Ive io Products

▪OpenAI acquired io Products, a hardware startup co-founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive, in 2025 for approximately $6.4 billion.
▪Apple's lawsuit names io Products as a defendant, though Jony Ive is not personally named as a defendant or accused of wrongdoing.

Masimo trade secret litigation

▪A federal jury in 2025 ordered Apple to pay Masimo $634 million after finding that Apple infringed Masimo's patents.
▪Medical device maker Masimo sued Apple in 2020, alleging Apple hired its executives and used proprietary pulse oximetry technology for the Apple Watch.

A123 Systems battery case

▪Apple denied wrongdoing in the lawsuit brought by A123 Systems, and the legal dispute was settled before reaching trial.
▪Battery manufacturer A123 Systems sued Apple for systematically recruiting its advanced battery team and benefiting from confidential battery research.

Silicon Valley talent poaching

▪Apple's lawsuit alleges that OpenAI has recruited over 400 former Apple employees to build its dedicated hardware division.
▪Apple alleges that OpenAI coached departing Apple employees on how to evade security protocols and avoid immediate dismissal during their exit.

No-poaching agreement scandal

▪The tech companies involved in the secret no-poaching agreement paid over $400 million to settle a resulting class-action lawsuit.
▪In the 2000s, Apple entered a secret, anticompetitive agreement with five tech companies, including Google and Intel, to prevent employee solicitation.