Apple adds evidence in trade secrets case against OpenAI

Apple says a former employee used confidential material at OpenAI and tried to destroy evidence, while OpenAI argues the dispute is tied to Apple’s access controls.

Apple has filed new allegations in its lawsuit against OpenAI, saying it now has “shocking evidence” to support its claim that former employees took trade secrets for OpenAI’s benefit. The latest details emerged after the lawyer for former Apple employee Chang Liu — who now works at OpenAI — turned over Liu’s old Apple work laptop for review earlier this month.

The dispute goes well beyond one person’s access to files. Apple is trying to show that confidential material may have ended up inside a rival company, while OpenAI says Apple is overstating the issue and ignoring its own access-management problems. As IT-PUB News notes, the case could also shape how companies handle sensitive data when employees move to competitors.

Apple says OpenAI work involved confidential Apple material

In its new filing, Apple says Liu used a confidential Apple circuit schematic in work at OpenAI. It also alleges that he used a tool with the same name as an internal Apple engineering application.

Apple further claims OpenAI was “well-aware” of Liu’s access to Apple data. According to the filing, Liu also asked OpenAI colleague Yu-Ting Peng in June to help destroy evidence after learning that Apple was investigating him.

Apple says the reviewed MacBook strengthens its argument that the case is not built on vague suspicions. In the filing, the company says the laptop shows it is not conducting “fishing expeditions” and that its trade secrets are being used while evidence is being destroyed.

Much of the newly cited material is redacted from public view, so the exact contents are not visible in the version of the filing available publicly. Even so, Apple says the laptop gives it a stronger basis to press ahead with the case.

Text messages and post-exit access remain a key dispute

Earlier filings already included text messages from Liu that Apple says showed he knew he still had access to Apple files. In those messages, according to Apple’s earlier court material, Liu used “crying laughing” emojis.

OpenAI has defended Liu by saying he accessed Apple files only after leaving the company, and only to help former colleagues who had asked for his assistance. In a blog post earlier this month, OpenAI said Apple was trying to shift blame to “residual access,” while failing to disclose what OpenAI described as a common issue at Apple caused by poor system access management when employees leave.

Apple rejects that explanation. It says Liu was able to retain access because he “exploited a rare, previously unknown authentication bug.”

That disagreement is now central to the case. Apple is framing it as misuse of confidential data and possible destruction of evidence. OpenAI, by contrast, has suggested the problem may stem from Apple’s own internal controls.

Apple seeks limits on OpenAI hardware work

Apple is asking for a preliminary injunction that would block OpenAI from working on hardware based on Apple’s technology while the lawsuit continues. It is also seeking expedited discovery, a faster evidence-gathering process.

Apple says that step is necessary because it believes more former employees may be involved. The filing does not identify them, but Apple’s initial complaint said more than 400 former Apple employees now work at OpenAI.

That number adds weight to Apple’s push for faster access to evidence, though it does not by itself prove wrongdoing by those employees. If Apple persuades the court that confidential information may have spread more broadly, the dispute could grow beyond one former employee’s laptop.

The lawsuit puts focus on employee moves between rivals

The case is drawing attention because it touches on a familiar but sensitive issue in tech: what happens when employees move from one company to another while still having access to old files, tools, or internal systems.

For businesses, that can mean more pressure to manage account access carefully when staff leave. For workers — especially in competitive tech fields — it can lead to disputes over whether they are relying on general knowledge, old documents, or proprietary material that should not follow them to a new employer.

The current filings do not establish how the case will end. But they do show how quickly a personnel move can turn into a broader legal fight when one company believes its confidential information has crossed into a competitor’s work.

TechCrunch has requested comment from OpenAI on Apple’s newest allegations.