Apple sues OpenAI for trade secret theft, alleging it asked recruits to bring hardware prototypes

Apple 起诉 OpenAI 窃取商业机密

Apple sued OpenAI in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, accusing it of a pattern of trade secret theft led by Chief Hardware Officer Tang Tan. The complaint says Tan used Apple's confidential project code names during recruiting, asked candidates to bring Apple hardware components to interviews, and coached departing employees on bypassing security. Tan spent 24 years at Apple as VP of product design for iPhone and Apple Watch. OpenAI is rumored to be building a phone that uses AI agents instead of apps, a direct threat to Apple's core business. The post does not disclose the damages Apple is seeking or which specific secret projects were targeted.

Why it matters: Apple sues OpenAI for trade secret theft, alleging former VP Tang Tan ran a systematic poaching operation with instructions on bypassing security. The complaint's specificity — project code names, physical parts — makes this a must-read. Caveat: only Apple's filing is public s...