Apple sues OpenAI over stolen trade secrets, threatens AI hardware ambitions

Apple has filed a significant trade secrets lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that current and former Apple employees at OpenAI—hired partly through designer Jony Ive's io Products startup—systematically gathered confidential information about Apple's hardware and future projects. According to the complaint, Tang Tan, now OpenAI's chief hardware officer, was the alleged mastermind of these efforts. During his 24 years at Apple, where he served as VP of the Apple Watch, Tan had deep knowledge of the company's secret projects and processes. After leaving Apple in 2024 to join io Products, he brought that insider knowledge to OpenAI when the company acquired io Products for $6.5 billion（約1兆円） in 2025.

The specific allegations are striking. Apple claims that during job interviews, ex-Apple employees asked candidates to divulge information about code-named projects and requested that they bring pieces of Apple hardware outside the office for "show and tell" sessions. Some candidates allegedly felt comfortable sharing sensitive information because Tan seemed to already know details about classified projects, creating a false sense of his legitimacy. In one egregious example cited in the lawsuit, someone who accessed Apple confidential information on a device messaged "LOL! So funny that I can access this." OpenAI has denied all allegations and has not yet filed a legal response.

The timing and context make this case particularly threatening to OpenAI. The company is already burning cash and facing pressure from investors to demonstrate a path to profitability, especially as it prepares for an IPO. Legal experts interviewed by The Verge indicated that Apple is a notoriously tenacious litigant willing to pursue expensive, multi-year cases. However, Apple's past IP lawsuits offer limited precedent for OpenAI's situation. When Apple sued Microsoft over the Mac's look and feel in the 1990s, Microsoft survived and thrived. When Apple sued Samsung over Android phones in the 2000s and 2010s, Samsung eventually paid roughly $1 billion（約1600億円） in damages but emerged as a major mobile competitor. Samsung could absorb that cost; OpenAI, by contrast, lacks the financial cushion and established profitability to do the same.

Jony Ive, the world-famous designer behind the iPhone and other iconic Apple products, is conspicuously absent from the lawsuit despite heading OpenAI's hardware efforts. Recently, Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman released a video describing smartphones and laptops as "legacy devices"—a remark widely interpreted as a pointed critique of Apple's core business. Yet Ive faces no allegations in the suit, suggesting either that he knew how to cover his tracks or that Apple deemed the political cost of naming him too high. What remains clear is that OpenAI's $6.5 billion（約1兆円） hardware bet, built on Ive's reputation and io Products' team, now hangs in the balance as the lawsuit unfolds. Whether OpenAI settles by paying Apple a substantial sum or fights the case for years could determine its ability to define the next era of AI-powered devices.

This lawsuit represents Apple's third major intellectual property offensive in recent decades—first copyright against Microsoft in the 1990s, then patents against Samsung in the 2000s and 2010s, and now trade secrets against OpenAI. In both previous cases, Apple's competitors ultimately survived: Microsoft kept Windows, and Samsung kept Android despite paying roughly $1 billion（約1600億円） in damages. However, OpenAI faces a fundamentally different situation. The company is not yet profitable, is burning cash, and is preparing for an IPO while investors scrutinize its path to profitability. A prolonged legal battle with Apple—described by lawyers interviewed as a notoriously tenacious litigant willing to pursue cases for years—could severely constrain OpenAI's ability to invest in hardware and compete across its consumer and enterprise markets.

The lawsuit also carries a personal dimension that may shape its trajectory. Tang Tan's 24-year tenure at Apple, combined with his role as chief hardware officer at OpenAI, positions him as the central figure in Apple's allegations. Jony Ive's conspicuous absence from the lawsuit despite heading OpenAI's hardware ambitions is notable—whether by design, legal strategy, or because he left fewer digital footprints is unclear. What is clear is that OpenAI spent $6.5 billion（約1兆円） to acquire Ive's hardware startup io Products in 2025, a bet that now sits directly in Apple's crosshairs. The outcome of this case will likely determine whether OpenAI can credibly claim the role of architect for the next generation of AI-powered devices.

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