OpenAI Countersues Apple Over Trade Secret Lawsuit: Using Lawsuits to Hinder AI Hardware Competition, Vulnerabilities in Its Own Information Management

According to TechCrunch, OpenAI is countering Apple's lawsuit over alleged trade secret leaks, claiming that Apple's own information security management and employee offboarding processes have vulnerabilities, and that it cannot prove the relevant information constitutes protected trade secrets. Apple previously accused OpenAI of obtaining hardware-related secrets through former employees who joined OpenAI from Apple, and requested the court to expedite the evidence discovery process. In its latest legal filings, OpenAI stated that Apple allows employees to use personal iCloud accounts to process work materials and did not revoke access rights in a timely manner after employees departed. OpenAI states that Apple did not clearly specify the concrete trade secrets alleged to be stolen, but merely referred generally to information such as product development processes, supply chains, and testing. OpenAI argues that Apple's current lawsuit is primarily intended to restrict its development in the AI hardware sector, and denies that the company needs or uses Apple trade secrets. The dispute between the two parties centers on employee mobility, intellectual property protection, and competition in the AI hardware sector.