In a new court filing, OpenAI claims it was also a victim of confidential information theft, and suggests that Apple's HomeView project was somehow influenced by that theft. The filing comes out of the forensic investigation required by Apple's own trade secret lawsuit, during which OpenAI says it discovered trade theft by Apple.
OpenAI says the alleged thief joined the company from Apple, worked there for six months, and then returned to Apple. When they went back, the company says they took details of one OpenAI hardware device stored in personal accounts. The documents reportedly include specific images, engineering information, supplier information, manufacturing data, and standards for cosmetic finishes and sealants. OpenAI says the employee returned to Apple in June 2026, and it draws a parallel to HomeView, a project that has been in development for at least three years.
The filing also says the employee gave presentations on product plans to Apple's vice president of operations in Asia, and that OpenAI raised the issue with Apple, which reportedly never responded. Apple has denied that the theft or briefing took place, saying it has policies and procedures to ensure new employees do not use confidential information from OpenAI or any other company. The filing does not name the alleged thief.
Apple has separately sued former employees Tang Yew Tan and Chang Liu, alleging they stole trade secrets through iCloud exploits and used them to benefit OpenAI. OpenAI denies those accusations and says it has procedures to prevent such leaks. Apple will receive some of the OpenAI documents it requested in court.
Source: AppleInsider · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing