Apple, OpenAI Trade Secret Fight Escalates — SkimNews
Get the Tech newsletter
Daily tech — startups, AI labs, chips, the launches that shape the next decade. Free.
- Apple sued OpenAI in federal court in July, alleging that OpenAI executives and former Apple employees orchestrated an effort to steal confidential information about unreleased products.
- OpenAI responded Monday to Apple's preliminary injunction request, calling the dispute "a mess of Apple's own making" and labeling Apple's allegations a "witch hunt" while arguing the injunction should be denied.
- Apple escalated on Monday by alleging in a new court filing that OpenAI is actively destroying evidence in the case, as first reported by Bloomberg.
- OpenAI asked a federal judge on August 5 to dismiss the suit, arguing the case reflects Apple's struggle to retain engineers and keep pace in AI rather than genuine trade-secret theft.
- The companies' partnership dates to June 2024, when Apple announced plans to integrate ChatGPT into the iPhone, iPad, and Mac, but tensions emerged in May 2025 when OpenAI bought former Apple designer Jony Ive's io startup for $6.4 billion.
- Apple has recalibrated its AI strategy, partnering with Google in January to run Apple Intelligence features on Gemini AI models and cloud technology.
- The case is scheduled for a court hearing before a judge on October 1, and Apple is pushing for the dispute to move into the discovery phase.
Why it matters: If the case reaches discovery, two of tech's most secretive companies would be forced to disclose internal practices around talent recruitment, hardware development, and trade-secret protection. The lawsuit also lays bare how Apple and OpenAI's 2024 partnership has collapsed into direct competition for AI hardware, underscored by OpenAI's $6.4 billion io acquisition under former Apple designer Jony Ive.
Ask SkimNews
