In an extraordinary legal confrontation that pits the world's most valuable technology company against the burgeoning artificial intelligence enterprise, Apple Inc. has litigated OpenAI for proprietary information theft, alleging a systematic campaign of corporate espionage.

The Complaint

The litigation, filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, indicts OpenAI, two former Apple employees, and io Products—a hardware design firm acquired by OpenAI last year that was co-founded by Apple's legendary former design chief, Jony Ive.

In the substantial 41-page complaint, Apple contends that OpenAI has engaged in a coordinatedstrategy to misappropriate Apple's most closely-guarded secrets regarding unreleased hardware products, technical specifications, and supply chain relationships.

"At every level, from members of its Technical Staff to its Chief Hardware Officer, and in coordination with business partners, OpenAI has been stealing Apple's trade secrets and confidential information," Apple articulated in the complaint. "OpenAI's nascent hardware business now rests on the shakiest of foundations, rotten to its core by its illegal reliance on misappropriated trade secrets."

Key Personages Accused

The lawsuit identifies Tang Tan, OpenAI's Chief Hardware Officer, as a principalprotagonist in the alleged theft. Tan, who departed Apple in 2024 after approximately 24 years of tenure, had ascended from product designer to Vice President overseeing iPhone and Apple Watch product design.

Apple alleges that Tan utilized Apple's confidential project codenames during OpenAI's recruiting process, coached departing Apple employees on how to evade the company's security procedures, and solicited job candidates to physically bring Apple hardware components to their interviews.

The second individual, Chang Liu, a member of OpenAI's technical staff who spent eight years at Apple as a senior systems electrical engineer, is accused of downloading dozens of confidential hardware files before leaving for OpenAI in 2026, including technical specifications, engineering presentations, and proprietary data for unreleased products.

The Allegations

According to the complaint, the purloined information encompassed:

• Technical specifications for unannounced technologies
• Engineering presentations and proprietary project data
• Details about Apple's vendors and contractors in the supply chain
• Proprietary terminology and supplier relationships
• Information about unreleased hardware products and features

Apple further asserts that Liu instructed an Apple employee on how to circumvent security teams when copying files, and disseminated Apple's confidential information to other Apple employees seeking positions at OpenAI.

Corporate Responses

In a prepared statement, OpenAI responded with brevity: "We have no interest in other companies' trade secrets. We remain focused on building innovative technology that empowers people everywhere."

An Apple spokeswoman added: "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."

Prior Attempts at Resolution

The complaint discloses that Apple sent a letter to OpenAI in February 2026 to raise its concerns about the alleged theft but received no response, compelling the iPhone maker to pursue legal recourse.

The Hardware Rivalry

This litigation emerges as OpenAI prepares to release a new class of hardware products that have been shaped in large part by Apple's former design leadership. The temporalnexus between the alleged theft and OpenAI's hardware aspirations forms a pivotal element of Apple's case.