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Apple filed a major lawsuit Friday against OpenAI, accusing the artificial intelligence company of systematically stealing trade secrets as it develops its own consumer hardware devices. The complaint represents a dramatic reversal from the companies’ high-profile partnership less than two years ago and signals intensifying competition in the race to dominate AI products.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges a “coordinated pattern of misconduct at an institutional level” by OpenAI. Apple contends that the company deliberately and methodically solicited confidential information from Apple’s current and former employees to accelerate its hardware ambitions.
“This case is about Apple’s former employees stealing Apple’s trade secrets for the benefit of OpenAI,” the lawsuit states. “Apple brings this suit to put a stop to it.”
The suit specifically names two defendants from OpenAI. Chang Liu, a former senior electrical engineer at Apple who joined OpenAI in January 2026, is accused of keeping a work-issued laptop and exploiting a security vulnerability to access Apple’s cloud file storage system. According to the complaint, Liu accessed and downloaded dozens of confidential hardware-related files containing detailed information about unreleased products, engineering presentations, technical specifications, and proprietary project data.
In communications disclosed in the filing, Liu allegedly wrote to a former colleague at Apple: “LOL, I found out I can access the [network storage], so funny,” upon discovering the access vulnerability.
Tang Tan, now OpenAI’s chief hardware officer, also faces allegations. Tan spent 24 years at Apple, most recently as vice president of product design for the iPhone and Apple Watch, where he worked on iconic products including the original iPhone, Apple Watch, and iPod. Apple alleges that Tan used his deep knowledge of Apple’s operations to orchestrate a systematic information-gathering campaign.
The lawsuit charges that Tan directed job candidates still working at Apple to bring actual hardware components—including batteries, logic boards, and other parts—to interviews for what he called “show and tell” sessions. He allegedly used Apple’s internal product codenames to elicit sensitive information from candidates and shared an internal Apple security document outlining employee departure procedures with OpenAI staff to help them evade Apple’s security checks.
According to the complaint, Apple discovered that departing employees bound for OpenAI emailed themselves confidential files to personal accounts. The lawsuit alleges that Tan also met with OpenAI collaborators before leaving Apple and discussed key supplier meetings, subsequently emailing himself information about Apple’s suppliers.
Apple claims the misconduct extended to OpenAI’s relationships with Apple’s suppliers. The company alleges that OpenAI approached one trusted Apple partner and requested it perform a proprietary metal-finishing technique, misleading the partner into believing Apple had authorized the use. The lawsuit states Apple also found evidence that OpenAI contacted another longtime Apple supplier using insider terminology to ask “targeted questions” about specific Apple components.
The company said it contacted OpenAI in February after launching an investigation but received no response. Apple is seeking an injunction to bar OpenAI from using or disclosing its trade secrets, the return of all confidential materials, and damages to be determined at trial. The lawsuit also names io Products, the company founded by Jony Ive, Apple’s former chief design officer who is now leading OpenAI’s hardware efforts, though Ive is not personally named as a defendant.
The legal action marks a sharp departure from the companies’ 2024 partnership announcement. At that time, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman visited Apple headquarters to celebrate the integration of ChatGPT into the iPhone’s operating system, positioning the AI assistant as an enhanced “answer engine” for users. But tensions escalated after OpenAI acquired io Products last year for $6.4 billion, signaling its ambitions to enter the hardware market.
Apple’s lawsuit comes as OpenAI prepares what is expected to be a historic initial public offering on Wall Street. The company faces mounting legal challenges and is expected to unveil its first consumer hardware device later this year. Reports suggest OpenAI is developing a smart speaker similar to Amazon’s Echo devices, though the company has not disclosed specifics.
The companies’ relationship deteriorated further when Apple announced it would base its updated Siri assistant on Google’s Gemini AI models rather than OpenAI’s technology, a significant blow given the earlier integration efforts. In May, reports emerged that OpenAI was considering legal action against Apple, claiming breach of contract over insufficient integration and promotion of its products.
Apple acknowledges that more than 400 former Apple employees now work at OpenAI, though the lawsuit does not target the company’s hiring practices broadly. Instead, it focuses on what Apple characterizes as a coordinated effort by senior leadership to extract proprietary information through specific employees and tactics.
The iPhone maker’s statement emphasized the company’s commitment to protecting its innovations. “At Apple, our teams are constantly developing breakthrough technologies to create the best products and services in the world, and protecting their work and intellectual property is something we take very seriously,” the company said. “Recently, significant evidence has emerged suggesting individuals employed by OpenAI wrongfully took Apple’s secret and confidential information regarding our unreleased technologies, processes, and products.”
The lawsuit highlights the fierce competition gripping the technology industry as companies race to dominate artificial intelligence. Apple is simultaneously building its own AI capabilities while managing its continued partnership with OpenAI on certain initiatives. The legal action underscores how the pursuit of talent and proprietary technology has become a flash point between erstwhile partners in the rapidly evolving AI sector.