Apple sues OpenAI over alleged trade secret theft
Apple sues OpenAI over alleged trade secret theft
苹果起诉 OpenAI，指控其窃取商业机密
Apple filed a lawsuit Friday against OpenAI over allegations of trade secret theft and breach of contract. The iPhone maker alleges that this misconduct, which it says reveals a pattern of theft from OpenAI employees who previously worked at Apple, was directed by OpenAI’s senior leadership, including Chief Hardware Officer Tang Tan. 苹果公司周五对 OpenAI 提起诉讼，指控其窃取商业机密并违反合同。这家 iPhone 制造商声称，这种不当行为揭示了 OpenAI 内部存在一种针对前苹果员工的窃取模式，且该行为是由包括首席硬件官唐·坦（Tang Tan）在内的 OpenAI 高层领导所指使的。
The lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, accuses Tan of using Apple’s confidential project code names during OpenAI’s recruiting process, asking job candidates to bring in Apple hardware components to their interviews, coaching departing Apple employees on how to evade the company’s security procedures, and asking for details about the company’s unannounced products. 该诉讼已提交至美国加利福尼亚北区联邦地区法院。诉状指控唐·坦在 OpenAI 的招聘过程中使用了苹果公司的机密项目代号，要求求职者在面试时携带苹果的硬件组件，指导即将离职的苹果员工如何规避公司的安全程序，并索取有关苹果未发布产品的详细信息。
Before joining OpenAI, Tan had spent 24 years at Apple, most recently as VP of product design for the iPhone and Apple Watch. The accusations come at a time when OpenAI is rumored to be developing its first hardware product, which would likely compete with the iPhone. In April, industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggested this device could be a smartphone that would rely on AI agents instead of apps. If true, it would be one of the largest threats to Apple’s core hardware business to date. 在加入 OpenAI 之前，唐·坦曾在苹果工作了 24 年，最近的职位是 iPhone 和 Apple Watch 的产品设计副总裁。这些指控出现之际，正值有传言称 OpenAI 正在开发其首款硬件产品，该产品很可能与 iPhone 形成竞争。今年 4 月，行业分析师郭明錤曾表示，这款设备可能是一款依赖 AI 智能体而非应用程序的智能手机。如果属实，这将是迄今为止对苹果核心硬件业务最大的威胁之一。
Apple’s former lead designer Jony Ive’s device startup io was acquired by OpenAI last year in a $6.5 billion deal to aid the AI company with its hardware ambitions. While io was named in the filing, Ive was not. 苹果前首席设计师乔尼·艾维（Jony Ive）的设备初创公司 io 去年被 OpenAI 以 65 亿美元收购，旨在助力这家 AI 公司的硬件雄心。虽然 io 在诉讼文件中被提及，但艾维本人并未被列为被告。
Tan is not the only OpenAI employee referenced in the new complaint. Apple also alleges that Chang Liu, who spent eight years at Apple as a senior systems electrical engineer, failed to return an Apple-issued laptop after leaving the company for OpenAI in 2026 and had used the computer to download confidential Apple technical documents. 唐·坦并非这份新诉状中提到的唯一一名 OpenAI 员工。苹果还指控曾在苹果担任高级系统电气工程师长达八年的刘畅（Chang Liu，音译），在 2026 年离职加入 OpenAI 后，未归还苹果配发的笔记本电脑，并利用该电脑下载了苹果的机密技术文档。
Apple says in the complaint that the stolen documents included information about unannounced technologies, features, and products, including technical specifications, engineering presentations, and proprietary project data. Liu is also accused in the lawsuit of sharing Apple’s confidential information with other Apple employees applying for jobs at OpenAI, advising at least one of them on what to study before their interview. 苹果在诉状中表示，被窃取的文件包含有关未发布技术、功能和产品的信息，包括技术规格、工程演示文稿和专有项目数据。诉讼还指控刘畅与正在申请 OpenAI 职位的其他苹果员工分享了苹果的机密信息，并建议其中至少一人在面试前复习相关内容。
Apple sent a letter to OpenAI in February to raise its concerns, and received no response, the company said in the complaint. It alleges that the behavior of these former employees is part of OpenAI’s strategy to extract Apple’s confidential information, which included asking Apple employees to bring designs and prototypes to their interviews, and answer questions about things like component and vendor selection processes. 苹果在诉状中称，公司曾在 2 月致信 OpenAI 表达关切，但未收到任何回复。苹果指控这些前员工的行为是 OpenAI 获取苹果机密信息战略的一部分，其中包括要求苹果员工在面试时携带设计图和原型机，并回答有关组件和供应商选择流程等问题。
Apple says its ongoing investigation revealed that OpenAI and its partners have even used Apple’s confidential information while the AI model maker develops its own hardware product. For instance, the filing references a proprietary metal finishing technique that was used by OpenAI after it allegedly misled a partner into believing it had Apple’s permission to do so. 苹果表示，其正在进行的调查显示，OpenAI 及其合作伙伴甚至在开发自有硬件产品时使用了苹果的机密信息。例如，诉状中提到了一种专有的金属表面处理技术，OpenAI 在误导合作伙伴使其相信已获得苹果许可后，使用了该技术。
Like many tech companies, Apple typically investigates potential trade secret theft or other improper activity by analyzing communications that took place on company-owned devices and reading through its server logs. By taking the case to court, Apple will have an opportunity to learn more about the extent of the alleged operation through the legal discovery process. 像许多科技公司一样，苹果通常通过分析公司设备上的通信记录和查阅服务器日志来调查潜在的商业机密窃取或其他不当行为。通过诉诸法律，苹果将有机会通过法律取证程序，进一步了解所谓非法操作的规模。
Apple is asking the court to bar OpenAI from using or disclosing its trade secrets, require the company to return any confidential Apple materials, and preserve evidence related to the case. 苹果请求法院禁止 OpenAI 使用或披露其商业机密，要求该公司归还所有苹果机密材料，并保留与此案相关的证据。
“This is the tip of the iceberg. Apple lacks visibility into what’s been happening behind closed doors at OpenAI, where such misconduct is normalized and exemplified by leadership,” the filing states. “As a natural result, OpenAI’s nascent hardware business now rests on the shakiest of foundations, rotten to its core by its illegal reliance on misappropriated trade secrets.” “这只是冰山一角。苹果无法洞察 OpenAI 闭门造车背后的真相，在那里，这种不当行为已成为常态，并由领导层带头示范，”诉状中写道。“自然而然地，OpenAI 萌芽中的硬件业务现在建立在最不稳固的基础上，因其非法依赖窃取的商业机密而从根本上腐烂。”
In a prepared statement, Apple also said the following: “At Apple, our teams are constantly developing breakthrough technologies to create the best products and services in the world, and protecting their work and intellectual property is something we take very seriously. Recently, significant evidence has emerged suggesting individuals employed by OpenAI wrongfully took Apple’s secret and confidential information regarding our unreleased technologies, processes, and products. We will always defend our teams’ hard work and innovations, and we are taking all appropriate steps to do so.” 在一份准备好的声明中，苹果还表示：“在苹果，我们的团队不断开发突破性技术，以创造世界上最好的产品和服务，保护他们的工作成果和知识产权是我们非常重视的事情。最近，大量证据表明，OpenAI 的雇员非法获取了苹果关于我们未发布技术、流程和产品的秘密及机密信息。我们将始终捍卫我们团队的辛勤工作和创新，并将采取一切适当措施来做到这一点。”