Apple has asked a U.S. judge to issue a preliminary injunction preventing two former employees and OpenAI from using confidential information. The request is part of a trade secret lawsuit filed last month.
The iPhone maker wants the court to prevent the individuals involved from possessing, using, or sharing Apple’s trade secrets. According to Apple, the company would suffer “irreparable harm” without such an injunction. At the same time, it filed a motion for expedited discovery, including documents related to the alleged access to Apple’s proprietary information.
Apple is asking the court to order sworn testimony from former employees Chang Liu and Tang Yew Tan, who now work at OpenAI. Liu was a senior systems electrical engineer, and Tan was vice president of product design for the iPhone and Apple Watch. OpenAI employee Yu-Ting Peng and an anonymous former Apple employee are also to be heard, as are representatives from OpenAI and io Products.
Battle over future AI devices
The case, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, centers on who will control the next generation of AI devices. These are devices that may operate without traditional apps or operating systems. If they succeed, they could divert attention away from the iPhone.
OpenAI responded in a blog post. “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,” the company stated.
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