Apple Accuses OpenAI of Trade‑Secret Theft in Major Lawsuit

Sun Sep 06 2026 06:27:34 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Apple has sued OpenAI and former employees, claiming they stole confidential information through employee hires.

Apple’s federal suit charges OpenAI and key ex‑Apple employees with a pattern of trading secret theft. The company alleges that former Apple staff infiltrated OpenAI, sending internal files inside:. Apple also targets io Products and a senior engineer and a former iPhone design VP now working for OpenAI. The suit follows a history of collaboration on AI tools and Apple’s recent shift from Google’s Gemini model to its own hardware plans. Apple requests a court injunction to stop OpenAI from using alleged stolen data and seeks damages.

Apple Accuses OpenAI of Trade‑Secret Theft in Major Lawsuit

Apple filed a federal lawsuit on Friday, alleging that OpenAI and two former Apple employees engaged in a "pattern of theft" of confidential product‑development data.

The case claims that ex‑Apple engineers emailed themselves sensitive Apple information after leaving the company for OpenAI. One named engineer, previously a senior electrical officer for eight years on Apple lines, reportedly helped OpenAI acquire manufacturing details and unreleased product plans.

Apple also sues io Products, a design start‑up founded by former Apple chief designer Jony Ive, which OpenAI acquired last year, and the company’s chief hardware officer who was previously VP of design for iPhone and Watch.

The lawsuit asserts that OpenAI, while hiring new Apple talent, demands "actual parts" from Apple for interview "show and tell" sessions, purportedly extracting more proprietary data.

Apple’s complaints follow a history of collaboration. Cropper Steve Cook had integrated ChatGPT into Apple devices and recently shifted the company’s AI strategy toward Google’s Gemini platform. The legal clash marks a significant shift in an otherwise cooperative relationship.

Apple requests an immediate injunction against OpenAI to prevent the latter from using alleged confidential information and seeks unspecified damages. The outcome could shape the future of consumer hardware powered by AI.