OpenAI says Apple 'is getting this wrong' after trade secret lawsuit
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OpenAI has published chat logs and emails to defend itself against Apple’s allegations.
Michael Vi/Shutterstock OpenAI calls the trade secret theft lawsuit Apple filed against it "careless, aggressive and oddly personal." It also denies any wrongdoing in its scathing response to the lawsuit and claims Apple got it wrong when it accused OpenAI of hiring its employees to get confidential company information.
If you'll recall, Apple sued OpenAI and two of its former employees, Chang Liu and Tang Yew Tan, in July. In its new lengthy response to the lawsuit, the ChatGPT-maker has published communications between Liu and his former colleagues at Apple to show that they reached out to him to ask for help locating certain confidential information after he had already left.
OpenAI says that after Apple filed its complaint, it admitted that its employees reached out to Liu. However, Apple allegedly tried to "shift the blame to 'residual access'" but didn't disclose that it was a common issue "caused by [the company] failing to properly manage system access when people leave." As a result, former employees can still access Apple files whether they want to or not, OpenAI writes. Sometimes, they aren't even aware that they still have access. Apple accused Liu of "surreptitiously [accessing and downloading] dozens of [its] confidential hardware-related files, including voluminous, detailed information about unreleased products, engineering presentations, technical specifications, and proprietary project data."
Meanwhile, Apple accused Tan of directing job candidates still working for it to bring 'actual parts' that they can show to OpenAI personnel at interviews. Tan and his team would use interviews to "solicit additional confidential Apple information," the company claimed. OpenAI's defense of Tan isn't as detailed, but it says he has always been clear with his team that the company doesn't want and must not use any confidential information from other firms. Tan was with Apple for 24 years and was the vice president of product design.
In addition to defending the two former Apple employees, the company says Apple's claim that it had tried to contact OpenAI in February about its concerns and didn't receive a response isn't true. Apple apparently emailed the wrong person after confusing two different Asian last names. You can read the chat logs and emails OpenAI has posted on its website .
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