Apple has filed a federal lawsuit against OpenAI, the creators of the popular ChatGPT LLM, accusing it of 'a pattern of theft' undertaken by former Apple employees. The suit claims OpenAI has gained access to data on unreleased Apple products and confidential information. Apple is seeking undisclosed damages, and an injunction to force OpenAI to stop using its trade secrets.
In its legal filing, Apple claims that Tang Yew Tan, OpenAI's Chief Hardware Officer and former Vice President of product design for iPhone and Apple Watch, divulged confidential company information. The Apple suit goes further, alleging that Tan encouraged Apple employees to bring Apple hardware to job interviews.
Another former Apple employee, Senior System Electrical Engineer Chang Liu, allegedly used an Apple-issued work laptop to access and download confidential Apple files, including information regarding unreleased products, engineering presentations and technical specifications while he was employed by OpenAI.
This line stands out from the complaint: "As a natural result, OpenAI's nascent hardware business now rests on the shakiest of foundations, rotten to its core by its illegal reliance on misappropriated trade secrets". Those are some fighting words. Apple isn't messing around. And if there's one thing we know about Apple, it has the cash on hand to pay some big lawyer fees.
Lawyers for OpenAI are reviewing the suit, but a spokesperson for the company told the BBC that it has "no interest in other companies' trade secrets".
OpenAI is readying its own hardware products, but hasn't publicly disclosed what they will be. It's also preparing for its IPO, which could potentially value the company at over a trillion dollars.
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The lawsuit comes despite a seemingly close relationship between the two companies. In 2024, Apple announced that it would integrate ChatGPT into its Siri voice assistant, which is included in Apple's Mac products, iPhones and iPad tablets.
