Apple has sued OpenAI for allegedly stealing hardware secrets, including unreleased iPhone parts and confidential project documents. Simultaneously, a group of OpenAI employees has launched a super PAC to push for stronger AI regulations. New York has enacted the first statewide data center moratorium in the country, a move that has drawn criticism from Donald Trump. The Department of Government Efficiency has blocked Freedom of Information Act requests regarding its use of AI in housing policy. WIRED’s Emily Mullin reports on a cyclosporiasis outbreak affecting more than 30 states.
Apple vs OpenAI
Apple filed the lawsuit last Friday. The company alleges that OpenAI obtained proprietary information through former staff members. Tang Tan, OpenAI’s chief hardware officer, is named in the suit. He spent 24 years at Apple before joining OpenAI. The complaint states he encouraged departing employees to take proprietary information and unreleased technology with them.
Apple is known for being litigious, but lawsuits over leaks are rare. This case focuses on the hardware supply chain. Apple views the iPhone as the primary computing platform for the AI era. The company wants to slow OpenAI’s hardware ambitions. If OpenAI succeeds with an audio-first platform, it could threaten Apple’s strategy.
Reports suggest OpenAI’s new device will resemble a speaker with motorised elements. One observer compared the sound to a Furby. Apple could build a similar speaker. It might include multiple AI options or rely on Siri. Ultimately, the phone remains the device people use most often. Apple has tried to move beyond screen-heavy interfaces with the Vision Pro. That product launched and faded quickly. Many tasks still require a screen. However, well-executed voice agents could change that.
OpenAI has hired more than 400 former Apple employees, according to the lawsuit. Last year, the company paid $6.5 billion to acquire IO Products. Founders included Tang Tan, Scott Cannon, Evans Hankey, and Jony Ive. Apple is losing AI and hardware talent to competitors. This hurts its position. Lawsuits trigger discovery. Lawyers will exchange emails and documents. The process often reveals internal conflicts between companies.
OpenAI staff take action
OpenAI staffers are funding a rival super PAC called Guardrails Alliance. The group advocates for tighter regulations on frontier AI labs. It launched last month with $5 million in initial funding. This is a counterweight to the $100 million Leading the Future fund supported by Greg Brockman and others.
Guardrails Alliance bills itself as a populist effort by tech workers and labor unions. Greg Brockman has donated heavily to MAGA and Trump-related causes. Maxwell Zeff, a WIRED reporter, has covered this extensively. The industry generally prefers a growth-at-all-costs agenda. However, many researchers and younger employees lean liberal. There is tension within OpenAI. Some staff call newer hires “MAGA blondes”. The company composition is changing.
One of the largest donors to the super PAC is Juan Felipe Cerón. He is a research engineer. He contributed $200,000 to the fund.
Other stories
New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the moratorium. It is the first of its kind in the state. The Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, used AI to shape housing policy. Officials will not disclose how they used the technology. A cyclosporiasis outbreak is spreading across the nation. It causes severe diarrhoea. The number of cases is expected to rise.
What it means
Apple’s legal action highlights the risk of relying on ex-employees for hardware development. OpenAI’s internal split shows how policy debates are playing out within tech firms. The New York moratorium signals growing friction between state governments and data centre expansion. The housing policy secrecy raises questions about government transparency. The disease outbreak requires public health attention across multiple states.
