With more than 400 former Apple employees now working at OpenAI, and a hardware rivalry intensifying, the lawsuit could reshape the future of AI devices and the uneasy alliance between the two companies
What was already one of Silicon Valley’s most complicated relationships has now become a courtroom battle. Apple filed suit on Friday against OpenAI and two of its former senior employees, accusing the ChatGPT maker of orchestrating a systematic campaign to extract confidential trade secrets and use them to accelerate its push into consumer hardware.
The Specific Accusations
In a lawsuit filed in 2023, two former employees of Apple – Chang Liu, a former systems electrical and Tang Yew, a former vice president of product design.were involved in copyright infringement case. Apple alleges that Liu had not returned the company laptop upon his departure and had gone on to use a security hole in their systems to steal information. Tan was alleged to have emailed himself supplier details on his last day at the company.
Apple also alleged that OpenAI employees approached Apple suppliers seeking proprietary techniques, including a secret metal finishing process, reportedly convincing one supplier the work had Apple’s approval when it did not.
A Partnership Under Severe Strain
Apple and OpenAI have some sort of working arrangement where iPhone users can access ChatGPT using Siri. The relationship, which Apple had on board since 2024 as a part of the launch of its Apple Intelligence program, remains tense in light of the recent developments that characterize OpenAI as a rival to Apple.
Apple wrote to OpenAI in February raising concerns about its confidential information. It received no reply.
Legal experts say the case has potential to become significant, particularly around the question of whether employees who carry proprietary knowledge when changing jobs expose their new employer to liability. The answer, as the case develops, may matter well beyond this particular dispute.
