Apple sues OpenAI over stolen trade secrets
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- Apple filed a trade secrets lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that ex-Apple employees solicited confidential information during job interviews, including asking candidates to bring hardware out of Apple offices for 'show and tell' sessions
- OpenAI is accused of targeting Apple’s proprietary projects through interview questions referencing secret code-named initiatives, with former Apple Watch VP Tang Tan alleged to be the central figure coordinating the effort
- Tang Tan was appointed OpenAI’s chief hardware officer after 24 years at Apple and leading Jony Ive’s io Products, which OpenAI acquired in 2025 for $6.5 billion to accelerate its hardware development
- Jony Ive, Apple’s former chief designer, is collaborating with Sam Altman on new AI devices, and reportedly has a strained relationship with Apple since his departure, adding a personal dimension to the legal conflict
- OpenAI denies the allegations, but legal experts note the case combines multiple serious trade secret claims that are individually common but collectively rare in one lawsuit involving two major tech players
- Apple has a history of aggressive intellectual property litigation against Microsoft and Samsung, though those companies could absorb legal costs more easily than OpenAI, which is still unprofitable and preparing for an IPO
Why it matters: OpenAI faces a potentially crippling legal battle at a fragile moment—burning cash, leadership in flux, and nearing an IPO—while Apple leverages its deep pockets and litigation track record to defend its hardware IP, raising the stakes for who controls the next wave of AI-driven devices.
