Apple filed a civil complaint on Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, bringing legal claims against OpenAI and two former Apple employees who subsequently joined the ChatGPT developer. In the filing, Apple identifies the two former employees as Chang Liu and Tang Yew Tan.
The suit alleges multiple specific acts. It claims that Tang Yew Tan, who is now serving as OpenAI's chief hardware officer, is currently employing Apple trade secrets in his OpenAI role. Separately, the complaint asserts that Chang Liu removed dozens of confidential hardware files after he began working at OpenAI.
Beyond the actions attributed to the two individuals, the litigation lays out additional allegations aimed at OpenAI's hiring and procurement practices. According to the filing, Apple says OpenAI encouraged job applicants to bring Apple prototypes and design artifacts into interviews. The complaint further alleges that OpenAI posed highly specific questions to suppliers about Apple manufacturing processes and components - questions Apple says only insiders would know to ask.
Apple also contends that OpenAI induced one of Apple’s partners to carry out Apple's metal-finishing techniques for OpenAI's hardware efforts. The suit asserts that those partner-level activities were inconsistent with contractual restrictions that, according to Apple, would have barred such work for OpenAI.
The complaint frames the legal action as a significant escalation in tensions between the iPhone maker and the developer of ChatGPT. Apple states these allegations amid an ongoing period of friction that, the filing says, has been building for several months.
Context and implications
The complaint brings together claims directed at individual conduct, employer direction, and supplier engagement. Apple’s filing strings these allegations into a single legal action seeking to address what it views as misappropriation and improper use of manufacturing know-how and confidential hardware documentation.
At this stage, the complaint records Apple’s factual allegations as presented to the court. The filing names the individuals and outlines the behaviors Apple contends have occurred; it does not set forth judicial findings or outcomes. The matter will proceed through federal court procedures in the Northern District of California.