Apple alleges ex-employee stole data

Apple has presented what it calls shocking evidence in its lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging a former employee stole trade secrets. The new details involve former Apple employee Chang Liu, who now works at OpenAI, and emerged after his legal counsel handed over his old Apple work laptop for investigation earlier this month.

Apple now claims Liu used a confidential Apple circuit schematic in his work at OpenAI. The company also alleges he used a tool sharing a name with an internal Apple engineering application. Apple asserts OpenAI was well-aware of Liu's access to Apple data.

Allegations of Evidence Destruction

The filing further alleges Liu enlisted OpenAI colleague Yu-Ting Peng to help destroy evidence in June. This occurred when Liu learned Apple was investigating him. The filing states the MacBook represents the very limited information Defendants provided so far, and shows Apple is not conducting fishing expeditions but that its trade secrets are being used and evidence is being destroyed.

While the new evidence is redacted, past filings included Liu's text messages. These messages, punctuated with crying laughing emojis, showed he was aware he still had access to Apple files after leaving the company.

OpenAI's Defense and Apple's Rebuttal

OpenAI has previously defended Liu's actions. The company stated he only accessed Apple files after stopping work there to assist former colleagues who asked for help. OpenAI wrote in a blog post earlier this month that Apple now tries to shift the blame to residual access, but they also don't disclose that this is a common issue with Apple which is caused by them failing to properly manage system access when people leave.

Apple counters this claim. The company argues Liu had continued access because he exploited a rare, previously unknown authentication bug.

Legal Actions and Broader Implications

Apple is seeking a preliminary injunction from the court. This order would block OpenAI from working on hardware based on Apple's technology while the case proceeds. The company is also requesting expedited discovery, a fast-tracked evidence-gathering process. Apple alleges more former employees may be implicated.

According to Apple's initial filing, a significant number of former Apple staff now work at OpenAI.

TechCrunch reports it has requested comment from OpenAI on these newest allegations.