Apple has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, accusing the artificial intelligence company of stealing trade secrets as it pursues the development of its own hardware for ChatGPT. The suit, lodged in a California federal court on Friday, marks a significant disruption in the relationship between Apple and OpenAI.
In its filing, Apple stated that the alleged theft of trade secrets was part of a "coordinated pattern of misconduct at an institutional level" by OpenAI. The lawsuit explicitly names two former Apple employees now working at OpenAI as defendants. Tang Tan, who was instrumental in the design of products including the iPhone and Apple Watch, is now OpenAI's chief hardware officer. Chang Liu, a former electrical engineer entrusted with sensitive product development at Apple, also left to join OpenAI earlier this year, according to the suit.
OpenAI has not yet responded to requests for comment. The company has previously described its hardware initiative as an effort to explore novel ways of interacting with AI, moving beyond conventional products and interfaces. This push aims to create a physical form for advanced AI, reminiscent of Amazon's and Google's earlier introductions of voice-activated speakers.
Apple's lawsuit asserts that this hardware endeavor has been built, in part, using knowledge improperly acquired from Apple. The company is seeking to halt this alleged misappropriation of its proprietary information.