apple was sued on Friday OpenAI In federal court in Northern California, the Artificial Intelligence Institute filed a trade secret theft lawsuit alleging it stole the iPhone maker’s intellectual property to develop its own consumer hardware.
“But this much is clear: At every level, from members of the technical staff to the chief hardware officer, and in coordination with business partners, OpenAI is stealing Apple’s trade secrets and confidential information,” the company said in its lawsuit.
This is a shocking reversal for the two companies, which entered into a high-profile partnership in 2024 when ChatGPT was integrated into the iPhone’s operating system. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman visited Apple headquarters for the announcement.
On Thursday, September 4, 2025, during a dinner with technology leaders in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., OpenAI CEO Sam Altman walked out and Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook said he would impose tariffs on semiconductor imports “in the near future,” but also on spare parts from companies like Apple that have pledged to increase investment in the United States. Photographer: Will Oliver/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Will Oliver | Bloomberg | Getty Images
But relations between the two companies have cooled since last year, when OpenAI announced plans to enter the hardware industry by acquiring former Apple designer Jony Ive’s startup IO Products for $6.4 billion.
The updated version of Apple’s Siri assistant, launching this fall, will be based on: googleInstead of OpenAI’s technology, we use the Gemini AI model.
Most of Apple’s claims involve former employees who interviewed with or joined OpenAI.
Apple alleged that Tang Tan, head of hardware at OpenAI and former Apple vice president, instructed Apple employees interviewing at OpenAI to share Apple secrets as part of the interview process. Mr. Tan is named as a defendant in the lawsuit.
“He directs job candidates still working at Apple to bring ‘real parts’ of Apple to their interviews for ‘show-and-tell’ sessions, where he and his team at OpenAI can extract even more confidential Apple information,” Apple said in the filing.
Apple claimed that OpenAI taught departing Apple employees how to bypass security processes upon leaving the iPhone maker, and that Chang Liu, a former employee who joined OpenAI, stole an Apple laptop. Mr. Liu is named as a defendant in the lawsuit.
Apple also said it believes that while OpenAI requires hardware companies to implement metal finishing technology invented by Apple, it “misleads partners that it has Apple’s permission.”
“Recently, significant evidence has come to light suggesting that individuals employed by OpenAI have improperly removed Apple’s confidential information about our unreleased technologies, processes, and products,” an Apple representative told CNBC in a statement.
“We are not interested in other companies’ trade secrets. We remain focused on building innovative technology that empowers people everywhere,” OpenAI representatives said in a statement.
IO Products is also the subject of the lawsuit.
OpenAI hasn’t announced when or what its hardware product will look like, but Altman said the first prototype was completed in November.
Apple did not comment on whether the lawsuit affects its partnership with OpenAI, which includes ChatGPT’s integration into Apple Intelligence.
Growing legal issues are a new risk for OpenAI as it prepares for what is expected to be a historic IPO.
Apple’s complaint comes two months after OpenAI won a high-profile case against Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. A federal jury found that Musk, who helped launch OpenAI, waited too long to sue the AI Institute over claims that Altman, co-founder Greg Brockman and the company breached an agreement to operate as a nonprofit organization. Musk said he plans to appeal.
Apple is seeking damages, an injunction, and an order forcing OpenAI to stop using its trade secrets.
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