Apple’s OpenAI lawsuit is about who gets to define the post-smartphone era
The company says a number of ex-Apple employees at OpenAI targeted Apple’s trade secrets in job interviews and even downloaded files from Apple’s servers related to hardware manufacturing. The claims are shocking, although OpenAI denies them, and we have yet to see the company’s legal response.Hayden has been covering OpenAI for years now, and she also just talked to a bunch of lawyers who specialize in intellectual property and trade secret law to get a sense of how serious this case is. The answer is not entirely positive for OpenAI, which spent $6.5 billion to acquire legendary Apple designer Jony Ive’s AI hardware startup, io Products, back in 2025.As you’ll hear Hayden explain, Apple is a notoriously tenacious litigant, and we have lots of tech industry history to back up that reputation.
- ▪The company says a number of ex-Apple employees at OpenAI targeted Apple’s trade secrets in job interviews and even downloaded files from Apple’s servers related to hardware manufacturing.
- ▪The claims are shocking, although OpenAI denies them, and we have yet to see the company’s legal response.Hayden has been covering OpenAI for years now, and she also just talked to a bunch of lawyers who specialize in intellectual property
- ▪The answer is not entirely positive for OpenAI, which spent $6.5 billion to acquire legendary Apple designer Jony Ive’s AI hardware startup, io Products, back in 2025.As you’ll hear Hayden explain, Apple is a notoriously tenacious litigant,
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PodcastsClosePodcastsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All PodcastsAICloseAIPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All AIPolicyClosePolicyPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All PolicyApple’s OpenAI lawsuit is about who gets to define the post-smartphone eraOpenAI can’t afford another lawsuit, especially not with a company like Apple.by Nilay PatelCloseNilay PatelEditor-in-ChiefPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Nilay PatelJul 23, 2026, 2:00 PM UTCLinkShareNilay PatelCloseNilay PatelPosts from this author will be added to…
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