Apple claims OpenAI is using confidential Apple material and destroying evidence

Apple Inc. filed a court brief Monday accusing OpenAI of destroying evidence and using confidential Apple material, alleging that former iPhone engineer Chang Liu downloaded a confidential Apple circuit schematic and used it in his work at OpenAI. The filing supports Apple's motion for expedited pretrial fact-finding in its trade-secrets lawsuit against the ChatGPT-maker, which has pushed for dismissal. Liu, who left Apple for OpenAI in January, is one of more than 400 former Apple employees now at the AI company.

Apple has escalated its legal battle against OpenAI, claiming in a new court filing that OpenAI is actively destroying crucial evidence and that former iPhone engineer Chang Liu “not only downloaded a confidential Apple circuit schematic but also used it in his work” at the artificial intelligence company. The court brief was filed Monday in support of Apple’s motion for expedited pretrial fact-finding in the lawsuit, which accuses the ChatGPT-maker of stealing trade secrets. OpenAI has pushed to have the case dismissed. Liu, who left Apple for OpenAI in January, is central to the case. He is one of more than 400 former Apple employees who went to work for the AI company, which is making a foray into the market for hardware devices.