Apple filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in Northern California federal court on Friday, July 11, 2026, accusing former Apple employees of stealing trade secrets for OpenAI’s benefit. The 41-page complaint describes Apple’s hardware-related intellectual property as “one of the most valuable intellectual assets in all of American business.”
The lawsuit names three former Apple employees now working at OpenAI: Tang Tan, former VP of Apple Watch who spent 24 years at Apple before becoming OpenAI’s chief hardware officer; Chang Liu, a former iPhone systems electrical engineer with eight years at Apple; and Yu-Ting “Alyssa” Peng, whose Apple tenure is less documented. Among the more striking allegations, the complaint claims Tan asked job candidates to bring Apple hardware to OpenAI interviews for “show and tell” and coached Apple employees on how to avoid the company’s offboarding security procedures. Apple also stated the named individuals represent only “the tip of the iceberg” of a broader pattern of theft.
The lawsuit arrives at a particularly difficult moment for OpenAI. The company confidentially submitted a Form S-1 to the SEC last month in preparation for an IPO, faces investor pressure to turn a profit, and is planning to release a hardware device in 2027 — a product line it entered by acquiring designer Jony Ive’s startup, io, for nearly $6.5 billion. The Apple lawsuit directly threatens that hardware ambition.
Legal experts who spoke with The Verge described the individual allegations as relatively standard trade secret claims, though notable for their volume and the seniority of those involved. “Apple and OpenAI are going to be in this for the long haul,” said Alex Terepka of Watstein Terepka LLP, noting the case could stretch over years of discovery. McKool Smith attorney Avery Williams added, “It’s never fantastic to get sued by Apple when you’re trying to IPO. Apple is a tenacious litigant — they do not tend to back down.”
The suit also marks a sharp turn in what had been a cooperative relationship: Apple and OpenAI signed an agreement in 2024 to integrate ChatGPT into Apple devices. OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment.
Source: The Verge