Amaya Tomanová A legal battle between AppleOpenAI is gaining momentum. Apple because he presented new information to the courtmace obtained from forensic analysis MacBookwith former employee Chang Liu and claim to support his previous accusations of trade secret theft. Even more serious, however, is the claim that one of the OpenAI employees was also involved in the destruction of potential evidence. However, it must be emphasized at the outset that these are still allegations Appin an ongoing lawsuit, not about a fact confirmed by the court.
It could be interest you
Apple sued OpenAI and two of its former employees in July. One of the key figures in the case is former senior systems electrical engineer Chang Liu, who Apple he left in January and headed to OpenAI. Apple tvIt is alleged that Liu had access to confidential company materials even after his departure. OpenAI, on the other hand, calls the lawsuit unfounded and asked the court to dismiss it.
New MacBook has according to Appto change the situation
Apple is now relying on preliminary forensic analysis MacBookthat Liu used and which his lawyers submitted for review in August. According to Applu contains data that purports to show that Liu not only obtained a confidential electrical circuit diagram Applu, but he actually used it while working for OpenAI. Specifically, it was supposed to be a power-related scheme. Apple tvIt is reported that Liu accessed the material in March, about two months after he left the company, and subsequently used it in a simulation in the electrical engineering program LTspice. In the communication, he then stated that he taught the AI agent to use LTspice and evaluate the simulation results.
It is the involvement of AI that is extremely interesting in the whole dispute. Apple argues that if protected information ismace used in the work of an AI agent or model, removing them from further development may not be as simple as deleting a single document. The company is therefore concerned that any use of its know-how may continue and its exact extent will be difficult to determine later.
Suspicion of destruction of evidence
Even more serious is the next part of the new submission. Apple tvIt is reported that when Liu learned of the internal investigation into his actions, he sent instructions to a colleague at OpenAI to delete the evidence, and she was supposed to confirm that she would do so. According to AppIn addition, Liu and other OpenAI employees should have known about his continued access to clouda repository containing materials Applu. The forensic analysis also revealed a tool used by Liu while working at OpenAI that bears the same name as an internal engineering application. Applu. The similarity of the name alone does not, of course, prove that it is the same technology, but in the context of the other claims it does. Apple presents as another reason for a more thorough examination.
Apple Through the new filing, the company is primarily trying to convince the court to allow the accelerated gathering of evidence. It claims that any further delay could mean not only the continued use of its trade secrets, but also the risk of losing the materials needed to prove their true scope.
OpenAI defends itself
OpenAI's view of the entire dispute is significantly different. The company has previously stated that it is concerned about trade secrets AppLiu is not standing still and developing products that she says are completely new. Liu's approach to some materials after leaving the Applu explained, among other things, that former colleagues asked him for help and Apple did not properly remove his access to his systems. Apple on the contrary, they claim that Liu exploited an unusual and previously unknown authentication flaw.
OpenAI also asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming that Apple he did not sufficiently prove which specific protected secrets were to be misused and what harm he was to suffer.
Just newly discovered data from MacBooku should be according to Applu answers to part of this argument. Whether they will be equally convincing to the court is, however, an open question at this point. The dispute is still in its early stages and further submissions and counterarguments from both sides can be expected.
What is certain is that the case may be for Apple extremely important. OpenAI has acquired hundreds of his former employees in recent years and is intensively building its own hardware activities. So if the accusations AppIf they prove it, it will not just be a dispute over a few files taken by a former employee, but potentially a much larger question of how confidential know-how Appcould have influenced the product development of one of its most important future competitors.
Jan Vajdák 
