Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has asked a U.S. federal court to issue a preliminary injunction preventing OpenAI and two former Apple employees from accessing, using or disclosing confidential information as the technology giant pursues its trade secrets lawsuit.
The request marks the latest development in Apple’s legal action against OpenAI, which it accuses of misappropriating proprietary information to support its expansion into consumer hardware.
Apple Pushes for Injunction and Faster Evidence Gathering
Alongside its request for a preliminary injunction, Apple also filed a motion seeking expedited discovery to accelerate the collection of evidence in the case.
The company wants documents relating to the defendants’ alleged access to Apple’s confidential and trade secret information and has asked the court to order depositions from former Apple employees Chang Liu and Tang Yew Tan, who now work for OpenAI.
Apple also requested depositions from OpenAI employee Yu-Ting Peng, another unnamed OpenAI employee who previously worked at Apple, as well as corporate representatives from both OpenAI and io Products, OpenAI’s commercial hardware division, which has also been named as a defendant.
Liu previously served as a senior system electrical engineer at Apple, while Tan was the company’s vice president of product design for the iPhone and Apple Watch.
Apple Warns of Lasting Harm
In its court filing, Apple argued that immediate legal action is necessary to prevent further damage.
“Apple will be irreparably harmed absent a preliminary injunction,” the company said.
OpenAI Rejects Apple’s Allegations
OpenAI dismissed Apple’s claims, arguing that the requested court order is unnecessary.
“Apple’s request for a preliminary injunction is both based on false information and completely unnecessary because we do not have, nor want, any of their trade secrets,” OpenAI said in a blog post published late Monday.
Legal Battle Highlights Growing AI Hardware Competition
Apple filed the lawsuit last month in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that OpenAI and the two former employees improperly used confidential company information to support the ChatGPT developer’s consumer hardware ambitions.
The case follows OpenAI’s successful defence against a separate legal challenge brought by Elon Musk’s xAI and is expected to become a closely watched dispute over the future of AI-powered consumer devices.
Industry analysts believe OpenAI is developing its own smartphone or another consumer hardware product that could eventually compete with traditional mobile platforms, potentially challenging Apple’s dominance in the premium smartphone market.
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