According to the complaint filed on Friday, Chang Liu allegedly exploited a network vulnerability while employed at Apple to download more than 1,000 pages of confidential documents before leaving the company in January 2026. Apple claims the files contained highly sensitive information, including proprietary logic board designs, unreleased product details, and manufacturing data considered critical to its future hardware strategy.
The lawsuit also names Tang Yew Tan, who spent 24 years at Apple before joining OpenAI's hardware efforts. Apple alleges that Tan referred to confidential internal project codenames during employment interviews, raising concerns that proprietary information was disclosed outside the company.
In its complaint, Apple sharply criticized OpenAI's hardware expansion, including its 6.5 billion dollar acquisition of io Products, describing the company's device initiative as "rotten to its core" because it was allegedly built using stolen confidential information. Apple is seeking a court order to prevent any use of the disputed materials and to protect its trade secrets from further disclosure or exploitation.
OpenAI has rejected Apple's allegations, stating that it has no interest in using Apple's trade secrets and that its hardware development is focused on innovation. The company denied any reliance on confidential Apple information in pursuing its device ambitions.
The lawsuit comes at a significant moment as OpenAI accelerates its push into consumer hardware while also maintaining previous partnerships with Apple. The outcome of the case could have far-reaching implications for the protection of intellectual property, corporate competition, and the future of advanced hardware development within the technology industry.
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