Apple Sues OpenAI Over Stolen Secrets From Former Employees

Apple filed a lawsuit against OpenAI on Friday, July 10, 2026, claiming that two former Apple employees stole confidential information and shared it with the ChatGPT maker. The case was filed in federal court in California and names OpenAI's hardware division, IO Products, along with two individuals: Tang Tan, who leads hardware at OpenAI, and Chang Liu, who left Apple to work there in January The Verge.

IO Products is OpenAI's hardware company. It was created after OpenAI bought Jony Ive's design startup in 2025 — a deal that is widely seen as the start of OpenAI's effort to build its own consumer device. Both Tan and Liu previously held senior positions in Apple's hardware team before they left for OpenAI.

What Apple Says Happened

Apple's complaint is specific about what it claims went wrong. The company says Chang Liu accessed Apple's internal computer systems even after he quit, and downloaded dozens of confidential files about hardware — things like engineering plans, technical specs, and details about unreleased products The Verge. Apple also says Liu taught another former Apple worker how to copy confidential files in a way that would avoid getting caught by Apple's security team, according to the actual court filing.

Tang Tan faces similar accusations. Apple says he emailed information about Apple's suppliers to his own email address before he left the company. Apple also claims he asked Apple employees for confidential information during job interviews he was conducting for OpenAI. On top of this, the lawsuit says OpenAI specifically instructed job candidates who still worked at Apple to bring CAD files — digital design blueprints — and physical prototypes to their interviews.

Apple's complaint frames this as part of a "coordinated pattern of misconduct at an institutional level" rather than just two employees making individual mistakes WFMY.

An Apple spokesperson said "significant evidence has emerged suggesting individuals employed by OpenAI wrongfully took Apple's secret and confidential information regarding unreleased technologies, processes, and products" The Verge. OpenAI has not offered detailed responses to these specific allegations.

Why This Matters More Than a Typical Employee Dispute

The core question here is whether OpenAI's leadership directed this conduct or whether it just happened by accident. If Apple can prove that OpenAI deliberately instructed people to bring confidential Apple materials to interviews, the company could be held directly responsible — not just the individual employees. That would expose OpenAI to much larger financial liability.

This case arrives during a period when Apple and OpenAI are competing in new ways. Apple is adding OpenAI's language models into its products while also building its own AI technology. OpenAI, meanwhile, is moving beyond software and into physical hardware under Ive's direction. The dispute over stolen secrets matters not just because of the individuals named in the lawsuit, but because of what both companies are trying to build.

What Happens Next

Trade secret lawsuits like this one are difficult to win in court. Judges have to figure out the difference between knowledge a person legitimately carries from one job to another versus specific documents or data that actually belong to the first company. Apple's lawsuit focuses heavily on concrete evidence — downloaded files, emails sent to personal accounts, written interview instructions — rather than vague claims about general knowledge someone picked up while at Apple. That kind of specific evidence tends to hold up better in court.

The next important step is discovery, when both sides must hand over documents and answer questions in detail. If Apple can show the downloaded files, the emails, and the interview instructions really exist, the company has a much stronger case than most trade secret disputes in the tech industry, where it is often hard to tell the difference between what someone learned on the job and what actually belongs to the company.