The legal action centers on the conduct of two former Apple executives now at OpenAI: Tang Tan, the former VP of product design, and Chang Liu, a senior systems electrical engineer. Apple claims Tan instructed job candidates to bring proprietary hardware components to interviews and coached them on bypassing internal security protocols. Liu is accused of retaining an Apple-issued laptop after his departure in 2026, using it to download sensitive engineering presentations and technical specifications for unannounced products.
Apple contends these actions are central to OpenAI’s strategy to build a hardware business capable of challenging the iPhone. The filing highlights a specific instance where a proprietary metal finishing technique was allegedly misappropriated by OpenAI after the company misled a manufacturing partner about its authorization. Apple stated that it attempted to address these grievances directly with OpenAI in February but received no response, prompting the company to seek court-ordered discovery to determine the full scale of the alleged data theft. The lawsuit demands that OpenAI return all confidential materials and be barred from utilizing any information derived from Apple’s intellectual property.
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