Apple has filed a federal lawsuit against OpenAI, accusing the artificial intelligence company of a systematic campaign to steal trade secrets to accelerate its own hardware development. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges that OpenAI recruited former Apple employees to extract confidential information, including product designs, manufacturing processes, and supplier data. This legal action marks a significant escalation in tensions between the two tech giants as they increasingly compete in the consumer device market.
The lawsuit specifically names two former Apple employees, Tang Tan and Chang Liu, as defendants alongside OpenAI and its hardware subsidiary, io Products. Apple claims that Tan, a former vice president of product design at Apple, directed efforts to solicit proprietary information during hiring interviews. The company alleges that candidates were encouraged to bring sensitive materials, such as prototypes and internal design documents, to these meetings. Apple asserts that this conduct represents a coordinated pattern of misconduct at an institutional level.
Evidence cited in the filing includes allegations that Chang Liu, who joined OpenAI in January 2026, retained an Apple laptop after his departure. Apple claims Liu exploited an authentication bug to access internal network storage, downloading over 1,000 pages of confidential engineering data. The lawsuit alleges that Liu shared these materials to benefit OpenAI’s hardware initiatives. Apple states it launched an internal investigation in February and attempted to address the matter with OpenAI before pursuing litigation.
OpenAI has denied the allegations, with a spokesperson stating that the company has no interest in the trade secrets of other firms and remains focused on building innovative technology. The outcome of this case could have significant implications for OpenAI, which is reportedly preparing for a potential public offering. As the legal process unfolds, the industry will be watching to see how these claims of intellectual property theft impact the future of AI-integrated hardware.