What happened
Apple filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, its hardware subsidiary io Products, and two former Apple employees on July 10, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Jose Division. The case is docketed as Apple Inc. v. Liu, No. 5:26-cv-07078.
The 41-page complaint names Tang Tan, OpenAI's chief hardware officer and a former Apple vice president of product design, and Chang Liu, a former Apple engineer who moved to OpenAI. Apple alleges the two ran a "coordinated pattern of misconduct at an institutional level" to obtain confidential information about unreleased Apple products, including product designs, manufacturing methods and supplier details.
The specific allegations
According to the complaint, Tan used his knowledge of Apple's internal processes to question job candidates who still worked at Apple, in some cases directing them to bring physical parts or CAD files to interviews for "show and tell." The filing states that one candidate downloaded files related to a confidential Apple project hours before interviewing at OpenAI. Liu is separately accused of coaching Apple employees applying to OpenAI on what internal material to study before their interviews.
Tan co-founded io Products, the hardware venture OpenAI acquired in May 2025, and has led OpenAI's device efforts since.
OpenAI's position
An OpenAI spokesperson said the company has "no interest in other companies' trade secrets" and remains "focused on building innovative technology that empowers people everywhere." OpenAI had not filed a substantive response in the court docket as of this writing.
Why it matters
This is a fight over the industry's next hardware category, not just a personnel dispute. OpenAI's device ambitions, built around the team it acquired from io Products, depend on people who spent years inside Apple's product organization. Apple's complaint argues that dependency crossed into unlawful use of its trade secrets. If Apple wins injunctive relief, it could constrain how OpenAI's hardware team operates and slow a product effort the company has treated as a priority since the io acquisition.
The case also lands amid a broader wave of talent movement between Apple and AI labs, and it is likely to shape how both sides recruit going forward: expect tighter offboarding controls at Apple and more cautious interview practices industry-wide.
What to watch
The docket, Apple Inc. v. Liu, 5:26-cv-07078 (N.D. Cal.), will show whether Apple seeks a preliminary injunction against Tan, Liu or OpenAI's hardware program specifically. No hearing date had been set as of July 13, 2026.
Sources
- Apple Inc. v. Liu, No. 5:26-cv-07078, U.S. District Court, N.D. Cal. — docket via CourtListener: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73602437/apple-inc-v-liu/
- TechCrunch, "Apple sues OpenAI over alleged trade secret theft," July 10, 2026: https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/10/apple-sues-openai-over-alleged-trade-secret-theft/
- 9to5Mac, "Apple sues OpenAI, accuses ex-employees of stealing trade secrets," July 10, 2026: https://9to5mac.com/2026/07/10/apple-sues-openai-trade-secret-theft/
- JURIST, "Apple challenges OpenAI's hardware push in trade-secret lawsuit," July 2026: https://www.jurist.org/news/2026/07/apple-challenges-openais-hardware-push-in-trade-secret-lawsuit/