Apple has initiated legal action against OpenAI, claiming that former Apple employees now working for the artificial intelligence firm have misappropriated Apple's trade secrets "for the benefit of OpenAI." The tech giant's complaint specifically outlines "a pattern of theft of Apple’s trade secrets by OpenAI employees who were formerly at Apple." Named as defendants in the lawsuit are IO Products, the hardware startup founded by Jony Ive and acquired by OpenAI in 2025; Tang Tan, OpenAI’s chief hardware officer; and Chang Liu, who transitioned from Apple to OpenAI in January.
An Apple spokesperson provided a statement to 9to5Mac, emphasizing the company's commitment to innovation and intellectual property protection: "At Apple, our teams are constantly developing breakthrough technologies to create the best products and services in the world, and protecting their work and intellectual property is something we take very seriously. Recently, 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."
Neither Apple nor OpenAI immediately responded to requests for comment from The Verge regarding the ongoing legal dispute.
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