OpenAI has filed court documents alleging that it is a victim of trade secret theft involving Apple. The company claims a former employee, who returned to Apple in 2026 after a six-month tenure at OpenAI, retained sensitive internal data upon departure. This information reportedly includes engineering designs, manufacturing data, supplier details, and specifications for unreleased hardware.
OpenAI suggests these materials may have influenced Apple's AI hardware initiatives, specifically linking the data to the HomeView product. The company alleges the employee presented product plans to an Apple vice president of Asian operations. OpenAI has raised these concerns directly with Apple, though it has not publicly identified the individual involved in the alleged leak.
Apple has denied all allegations, stating there is no evidence of such misconduct. The company maintains that it enforces strict policies to prevent new hires from utilizing confidential information from previous employers. Apple previously initiated a lawsuit in July 2026 against two former employees, Tang Yew Tan and Chang Liu, accusing them of misappropriating trade secrets for OpenAI's benefit.
The ongoing legal battle has seen both companies trade accusations regarding the mishandling of proprietary information. A judge has partially granted Apple's request for discovery, allowing access to certain OpenAI documents related to the employees in question. While a trial date remains unscheduled, the litigation between the two tech giants continues to escalate.
