OpenAI has filed a motion to dismiss Apple’s trade secrets lawsuit, arguing that the tech giant’s own security failures prevent its claims from holding up in court.
The core argument
The new filing challenges the idea that specific information qualifies as legally protected trade secrets. OpenAI contends that Apple’s internal procedures and offboarding processes are too weak to support a theft accusation. The company is not denying that former employees worked at both firms. Instead, it suggests Apple did not secure its systems properly when staff left.
Evidence of poor security
Apple filed its complaint in July. It accused OpenAI of orchestrating a scheme to steal confidential hardware data from former engineers. This week, the company asked the court to speed up the discovery process. It claims an internal investigation shows more former staff may have been involved or witnessed the alleged theft.
OpenAI submitted text records to counter this. They show an Apple manager remained logged into the personal iCloud account of Chang Liu, a defendant and former Apple engineer, after he departed. The manager later asked Liu for help with technical questions about Apple projects.
The motion also states Apple allowed employees to use personal iCloud accounts for work. It failed to revoke access when they left the company. OpenAI argues Apple omitted the consequences of these “inexplicable information-management practices” from its original complaint. This failure to secure systems created confusion and unwanted access issues that Apple now characterizes as theft.
Blurring the lines
OpenAI suggests this argument strengthens its claim that former employees were simply trying to assist old colleagues. It also aims to push the narrative that the data was not truly a trade secret if it was not secured as such.
The filing notes Apple has not specified which “trade secrets” or confidential components were allegedly stolen. It refers to them instead as “generic categories of the product-development process—such as component manufacturing, product testing, vendor and supplier relationships, and distribution channels.”
Why Apple is suing
OpenAI posits Apple is using this lawsuit to slow down its competitor from innovating in AI-powered hardware. The company argues it is not focusing on its own product plans.
“OpenAI has no use, need or desire for Apple’s trade secrets,” the motion argues. “OpenAI is building something entirely new and different from anything at Apple. OpenAI does have an interest in hiring the best engineers, inventors, developers and creators—many of whom have decided to leave Apple and to come to OpenAI, attracted by the innovative and exciting work the company is doing. Apple might not like that,” it reads.
“…Apple should not be permitted to use a baseless and pretextual lawsuit to make up for its shortcomings in the market for talent and retaining its employees, and its failures to integrate AI into its products,” the motion says.
What it means
For the people making things, this legal battle highlights a practical reality. If a company does not lock down its data when staff leave, it risks losing the ability to claim that information was stolen. The outcome could determine whether former employees face legal trouble or whether their access to old work files is treated as a routine transition.
