OpenAI Agrees Not to Use Alleged Stolen Apple Secrets as Judge Signals Injunction

According to Bloomberg, OpenAI voluntarily agreed during a federal court hearing on Wednesday not to use trade secrets that Apple alleges were stolen by employees who jumped ship to the AI startup. U.S. District Judge Edward Davila stated at the hearing that he was "highly likely" to side with Apple and issue an injunction against OpenAI.

The agreement requires OpenAI to collect forensic images from the devices of 14 employees that may contain Apple confidential information. For OpenAI, this deal avoids the negative impact of a direct loss in its first substantive courtroom clash with Apple. Apple filed the lawsuit in July, alleging that OpenAI conspired to steal intellectual property related to products in development and used this information to advance its own competing device research.

Although the two companies reached a partnership two years ago to integrate ChatGPT into Apple software, their conflict has persisted for months. Hundreds of Apple employees have left to join OpenAI, sparking the dispute. With OpenAI currently aiming for a $1.4 trillion valuation and preparing for an IPO, this lawsuit casts a shadow over the startup. OpenAI firmly denies the allegations, arguing that Apple is suing to restrict employee mobility to competitors.

Notably, hours before the Wednesday hearing, OpenAI counter-alleged against Apple. In a court filing, OpenAI claimed that a former employee who moved from Apple to OpenAI and then back to Apple sent "hundreds of highly confidential documents" regarding at least one unreleased OpenAI device to personal accounts. OpenAI requested time from the judge to investigate whether Apple holds or uses this information. The case, Apple v. Liu (No. 5:26-cv-07078), is being heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (San Jose).