Apple sued OpenAI — OpenAI published Apple employees' own messages in response

Apple filed a federal lawsuit in California accusing OpenAI of stealing trade secrets through former engineer Chang Liu. OpenAI responded publicly, releasing iMessage threads that show Apple employees themselves contacted Liu after he left: on January 27, 2026, one asked for a technical assessment; on February 14, they requested schematics. In March, Liu was added to a group chat with Apple staff and wrote "this is highly irregular" before asking to be removed.

More than 400 former Apple employees now work at OpenAI, and the case is tied to the io Products hardware venture co-founded with Jony Ive. By publishing the chat logs, OpenAI moved the dispute into the court of public opinion — a sign that talent wars between AI giants are becoming increasingly public.