Apple Expands Its Legal Fight
Apple has a trade-secrets lawsuit against OpenAI. Trade secrets are the confidential technical details that give a company an edge, and Apple says some of its former engineers carried those details to a rival.
Now Apple wants the court to step in early. It filed a motion for a preliminary injunction, which is a court order that stops a company from doing something while the case is still going.
Apple wants OpenAI blocked from making an AI device or other products with Apple's technology. It also asked for faster discovery, the legal process where both sides hand over evidence.
The latest filing escalates the case. Apple says the alleged wrongdoing may reach beyond the people originally sued.
The filing names Chang Liu, a senior systems engineer at OpenAI, and Tang Yew Tan, OpenAI's chief hardware officer. It also names OpenAI, OpenAI's foundation, and io, a device startup cofounded by Jony Ive, Apple's former lead designer.
That puts Apple's former design chief close to the center of a messy dispute.
What Apple Says It Found
Apple says the problem is bigger than the original case. In addition to Liu and Tan, 11 other former staffers could be connected to the matter as either potential witnesses or participants.
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Yu-Ting Peng was already named in the original case. One previously unnamed ex-Apple worker appears to have met with Liu and Peng before Peng's OpenAI job interview.
During that meeting, the group talked about Apple's private details on unannounced products. Another former employee took screen captures of confidential Apple documents about an unannounced product before an OpenAI interview.
That is not a normal way to prepare for a job chat. Apple also says several former employees now at OpenAI reached out after the lawsuit was filed about returning Apple-issued work devices they still had.
Apple sees that as a possible sign that more people were involved. The company wants faster discovery because it has good reason to suspect others took part.
OpenAI Responds
OpenAI pushed back. In a blog post, it called Apple's request "both based on false information and completely unnecessary because we do not have, nor want, any of their trade secrets."
The company added: "We're much more interested in building innovative products and technologies that push the frontier."
OpenAI also pointed to mistakes Apple reportedly made earlier in the case. Apple mixed up two similar surnames and emailed the wrong person, according to OpenAI.
It also allegedly lied about conversations with OpenAI's general counsel. And OpenAI argues that if former employees kept "residual access" to Apple's systems, that is on Apple's own weak security, not on anyone who left.
What Happens Next
Apple's preliminary injunction request is still pending.
This case turns on whether departing engineers took confidential details and whether OpenAI has used them. Apple argues the two named employees may not be the only possible participants, while OpenAI says it has no interest in Apple's secrets. The injunction request asks the court to weigh those competing positions before the full case is resolved.
For investors, the courtroom back-and-forth matters less than the underlying signal. Apple is treating its confidential product plans as a critical asset.
OpenAI is denying that it wants them. The case could take a while to resolve, and it may not be the last fight of its kind in tech.
Engineers move between companies all the time. What they carry with them is the question.
If Apple's claims hold up, that question could shape how carefully tech workers handle files when they leave. For anyone with Apple stock, it is also a reminder that the company's future products are its crown jewels, and it is willing to fight hard to protect them.
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