OpenAI slams Apple: 400 of its employees have already defected to Apple, and the next batch of 400 will not be stopped either.

Beating AI News Flash: OpenAI has formally countered Apple’s trade secret lawsuit, calling the entire dispute "a mess Apple created itself". OpenAI claims Apple’s real purpose in filing the suit is to slow down its hardware rivals and deter more employees from leaving Apple. Apple submitted new evidence just one day earlier. Apple alleges that former senior systems electrical engineer Chang Liu, after joining OpenAI, still accessed an Apple power conversion circuit diagram and used Apple’s proprietary information to train an AI agent. The evidence comes from a MacBook that OpenAI provided to Apple during the litigation. OpenAI, in turn, states that Liu’s access to Apple files after leaving was due to former colleagues repeatedly reaching out to him to locate documents and answer work questions. Hardware head Tang Tan also denied taking confidential materials, noting he had returned all prototype devices before leaving and only left non-confidential data. OpenAI also used talent mobility to counter Apple: around 400 former Apple employees have already joined its hardware division. OpenAI argues Apple cannot use litigation to stop "the next batch of 400 people" from leaving. It also revealed that its first hardware product will be a new consumer device that is "substantially different" from existing Apple products.