OpenAI fights back against Apple's trade-secrets claim, says it's really about losing talent

OpenAI filed a motion to dismiss Apple's lawsuit Wednesday, claiming the whole case is a smokescreen for Apple's failure to compete for AI engineers and keep its own staff. The filing, 31 pages long, hammers on one word repeatedly: "fail." It appears roughly 50 times.

The lawsuit centers on two former Apple employees. Chang Liu left on January 22, 2026. Tang Tan spent over 24 years at Apple as a design executive before joining OpenAI. Apple alleges that more than 400 of its former workers have moved to OpenAI and that these two took confidential information during their departure.

OpenAI's defense flips the script. The company argues Apple created the mess itself. Employees were told to use personal iCloud accounts for work, blurring the line between corporate and private data. When people left, they kept access to files they never formally requested. Back in August, OpenAI published a blog post titled "Apple is getting this wrong" and released iMessages showing Liu's former colleagues asking him to help locate files and complete transfers after he had already quit.

What the motion actually says

The dismissal filing is blunt. "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," it reads.

The core argument is straightforward. OpenAI did not recruit anyone to steal secrets. Two people left Apple. Their old colleagues reached out to them. Apple had sloppy data access controls. Now Apple is suing to cover up that incompetence.

Why this matters

The case is really about AI talent wars. Apple has struggled to build credible AI products while OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta are pouring resources into the space. When engineers vote with their feet and leave, lawsuits don't bring them back. The dismissal motion essentially says Apple is litigating frustration, not actual theft.

This article is for informational purposes and should not be construed as legal or investment advice.