Apple has sued OpenAI, accusing the AI company of stealing trade secrets and intellectual property to develop hardware. The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of California, alleges that former Apple employees Tang Tan and Chang Liu orchestrated a scheme to extract confidential information about unreleased devices, manufacturing processes, and vendor relationships from Apple employees interviewing with OpenAI.

Apple claims Tan used his knowledge of Apple's departure procedures to help employees covertly share information and provided OpenAI with details on Apple suppliers. The company also alleges that OpenAI tricked a supplier into using a trade secret metal-finishing technique by falsely claiming Apple's permission. Evidence suggests interviewees were asked to bring confidential Apple components, like batteries and logic boards, to OpenAI interviews.

The lawsuit states that OpenAI's hardware business is fundamentally flawed due to its reliance on misappropriated information. Apple is seeking an injunction to prevent OpenAI from using its technologies and is also suing Tan and Liu for breach of contract. OpenAI has not yet responded to the allegations.