OpenAI publishes messages to dispute Apple trade secrets lawsuit

In short: OpenAI publicly shared iMessage and email exchanges to argue that Apple’s lawsuit over alleged trade secret theft is based on false claims.

What happened

OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, published a blog post titled “Apple is getting this wrong.” In it, OpenAI criticized Apple’s lawsuit as “careless, aggressive, and oddly personal.”

Apple sued OpenAI last month, saying two former Apple employees took “secret and confidential information” with them when they joined OpenAI. The employees named in the reporting are Chang Liu, a former iPhone engineer, and Tang Tan, who worked at Apple for 25 years and later oversaw iPhone and Apple Watch design. Apple claims the information could help OpenAI’s hardware plans.

OpenAI says it does not have Apple’s trade secrets and does not want them. Trade secrets are a company’s private know how, like a secret recipe or a blueprint that is not public.

Separately, Reuters reported that Apple has asked a court for a preliminary injunction. That is a temporary court order, like hitting a pause button, that would stop Liu, Tan, and OpenAI from accessing, using, or sharing the alleged confidential information while the case continues.

OpenAI’s blog post is not a formal court filing. Instead, it is aimed at the public, using selected messages and emails to try to show contradictions in Apple’s story.

Why it matters

This dispute could shape how easily employees can move between major tech companies without being accused of taking inside information. It also shows how big lawsuits can spill into public view, with companies sharing private communications to win support outside the courtroom.

Source: The Verge AI