OpenAI has agreed not to use trade secrets that Apple claims were stolen by former employees, after a federal judge signaled he was "highly likely" to grant Apple's request for a preliminary injunction in the escalating legal fight between the two tech giants.
The voluntary concession came during a hearing on Wednesday before US District Judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California.
Under the agreement, Davila will have the power to enforce OpenAI's commitment, meaning the ChatGPT maker could face court-imposed sanctions if it is found to have used or disclosed Apple's confidential information while the lawsuit plays out.
OpenAI also committed to collecting forensic images of devices from 14 employees that may contain Apple's confidential information. The images are meant to preserve evidence while the court decides how far Apple's inspection of its rival's hardware and systems can go.
A second win in a row for Apple
The judge did not give Apple everything it wanted. He described the company's request to inspect every device and repository that might contain its trade secrets as a "huge ask," pushing back on the breadth of the demand.
Apple's lawyer responded that inspections could be narrowed to the small group of former employees who defected to OpenAI, telling the court: "They don't have 400 bad apples, your Honor, they have a few bad apples and know who they are."
The dispute traces back to a lawsuit Apple filed in July, accusing OpenAI of scheming to steal intellectual property related to upcoming products and using it to bolster work on competing future devices.
The suit named OpenAI's hardware chief Tang Yew Tan and former iPhone engineer Chang Liu, along with OpenAI's device unit io Products, which it acquired in a multibillion-dollar deal.
The Wednesday hearing followed a separate order issued on Tuesday that granted Apple expedited discovery, including hiring and interview records, previously collected forensic material, and depositions.
The court declined, however, to accelerate Apple's access to certain research and development documents, leaving those requests for the regular discovery process.
OpenAI fires back
Hours before Wednesday's hearing, OpenAI made allegations of its own in a new court filing. It said a former employee who joined OpenAI from Apple, spent six months at the startup, and then returned to Apple sent more than 100 highly confidential files about at least one unreleased OpenAI device to personal accounts.
Apple alleges that confidential information about product design, manufacturing, components, testing, and suppliers was taken to help OpenAI develop competing devices. OpenAI has denied the allegations, arguing that Apple is treating ordinary job interviews and talent competition as trade secret theft.
What comes next
Practically speaking, the accord gives Apple most of what it was seeking from the injunction: a guarantee that its proprietary information remains off-limits for OpenAI's own technology development. For OpenAI, the agreement avoids the stain of an outright loss in its first substantive courtroom showdown with Apple.
The two companies have been at odds for months, despite a two-year-old partnership that wove ChatGPT into Apple's software. The dispute has put a cloud over OpenAI as it targets a valuation of about $1.4 trillion and prepares for a potential public listing, making every legal setback a potential distraction from its ambitions.
By Hamza Faisal
