The poaching of 400 people has triggered a trade secret war! OpenAI requests to dismiss the lawsuit, countering Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) with accusations of theft of trade secrets.

OpenAI is petitioning a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Apple Inc. (AAPL.US). Apple Inc. accuses the artificial intelligence company of stealing trade secrets, while OpenAI claims that the accusations are baseless. OpenAI's lawyers argue that Apple Inc.'s complaint mischaracterizes the actions of the startup's employees. They state that the behavior of the hardware business executives from the ChatGPT developer during interviews with Apple Inc. employees conformed to industry-wide hiring norms; the employee alleged to have stolen secrets was actually trying to assist their former colleagues at Apple Inc. In court documents submitted on Wednesday evening, OpenAI stated, The lawsuit from Apple Inc. is clearly filed without adequate investigation, relying on selectively quoted content from chat logs and out-of-context ordinary behavior. Borrowing Apple Inc.'s own wording, this complaint 'is fundamentally flawed from the ground up.' It should not be permitted for Apple Inc. to use this baseless, opportunistic lawsuit to compensate for its shortcomings in the talent market. The document also pointed out that Apple Inc. has failed to integrate artificial intelligence into its products and indicated that the lawsuit repackages the good-faith, lawful actions of former employeeswho, in many of the cited instances, were actually acting at Apple Inc.'s request to facilitate the ongoing work of their former colleagues after their departureas alleged theft of trade secrets. This move responds to Apple Inc.s lawsuit filed in July against OpenAI and its Chief Hardware Officer Tang Tan. Over the past two years, the two companies collaborated to directly integrate ChatGPT into the software for iPhone, iPad, and Mac, but the relationship has recently soured. The hardware company accuses OpenAI of orchestrating a scheme to steal trade secrets through Apple Inc.'s job applicants and new hires. The filing comes a day after Apple Inc. requested a judge to order OpenAI to cease using its alleged stolen trade secrets and to compel OpenAI to return any confidential information to Apple Inc. If granted, the injunction would remain effective while the lawsuit is pending. OpenAI has provided crucial technology for Apple Intelligence and the Siri digital assistant. However, tensions have escalated between the two parties over the past yearOpenAI hired former Apple Inc. design master Jony Ive to assist in developing devices, further worsening the situation. According to the lawsuit, the AI company has hired over 400 former Apple Inc. employees. Apple Inc.'s lawsuit specifically names former iPhone engineer Chang Liu, who joined OpenAI in January of this year. Apple Inc. claims that he discovered a validation vulnerability during the development of devices for OpenAI, which allowed him to access hardware-related confidential files within weeks. However, OpenAI contends that Liu was approached by several former colleagues at Apple Inc. seeking help in locating information necessary for their work. OpenAI has released text excerpts of messages between an unidentified Apple Inc. employee and Liu to demonstrate the existence of this help request. The statutory deadline for OpenAI to respond to Apple Inc.'s request for a preliminary injunction was August 17. A judge is scheduled to hear arguments on the motion on October 1. The case number is: Apple vs. Liu, 5:26-cv-07078, and it is being heard in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California (San Jose Division).