OpenAI accuses former employee of leaking intel on AI device to Apple

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OpenAI is accusing a former employee of stealing intellectual property related to an unreleased device and later sharing some of the information with Apple.

The employee, OpenAI alleges, had previously worked at Apple, then joined OpenAI for six months, before going back to Apple, according to a court filing from OpenAI on Wednesday.

The company said the employee downloaded over 100 highly confidential files to his personal accounts before rejoining Apple. The transferred files include “detailed images of the unreleased device(s), as well as highly confidential engineering and manufacturing data about the device(s),” according to the filing. The last file was sent in June on the employee’s final day, OpenAI alleges.

OpenAI went on to claim the former employee, who it did not name, “made a presentation about OpenAI’s product plans to Apple’s senior leadership, including Apple’s vice president of operations in Asia.”

“That presentation appears to have happened months ago—and now, armed with that information, Apple is making a new push into AI-enabled products,” OpenAI wrote in the filing.

Apple told CNN it has found no evidence to support the allegations and that it has strict policies in place to make sure new employees don’t use confidential information from previous workplaces. The company also said it would work with OpenAI to remediate any of OpenAI’s information found on Apple’s systems.

Apple accuses OpenAI of using stolen trade secrets to create its upcoming AI gadgets in new lawsuit

Apple accused OpenAI of trying to create a distraction from the original claims of their case. The allegations came as part of a filing in an ongoing lawsuit that Apple brought against OpenAI in July, alleging the AI company stole the iPhone maker’s trade secrets to develop its own gadgets. Apple alleged in its original filing that former employees who went to work for OpenAI downloaded confidential files, and urged job candidates to bring Apple parts to interviews at OpenAI. OpenAI has denied the claims, saying Apple hasn’t been able to identify any stolen trade secrets and has sought to dismiss the case.

Both companies are racing to create AI-enabled devices. This week, Apple announced HomeView , its biggest push into the smart home market in nearly a decade with a revamped version of Siri, making it a critical piece of Apple’s AI strategy. OpenAI is working on an AI-enabled device, reported to be a small screen-free smart speaker. Last year, OpenAI brought on former Apple product design chief Jonny Ive and his company, io, to take over design and creative responsibilities across the company.

While engineers and researchers regularly switch companies in Silicon Valley, Apple said in a court filing that OpenAI has hired more than 400 of its former employees.

CNN’s Lisa Eadicicco contributed to this report.

迪德姆·门特/阿纳多卢/盖蒂图片社

OpenAI 指控其前雇员窃取了与一款未发布设备相关的知识产权，并随后将部分信息分享给了苹果公司。

OpenAI 周三提交的法庭文件显示，该员工声称他之前曾在苹果公司工作，之后加入 OpenAI 工作了六个月，然后又回到了苹果公司。

该公司称，这名员工在重返苹果公司前，将100多份高度机密的文件下载到了他的个人账户。根据提交的文件，这些传输的文件包括“未发布设备的详细图片，以及关于该设备的高度机密工程和制造数据”。OpenAI 指控称，最后一份文件是在该员工6月份离职当天发送的。

OpenAI 还声称，这位未透露姓名的前雇员“曾向苹果公司的高层领导，包括苹果公司亚洲区运营副总裁，介绍 OpenAI 的产品计划”。

OpenAI 在文件中写道：“那次演示似乎是在几个月前进行的——现在，掌握了这些信息后，苹果公司正在大力推进人工智能产品。”

苹果公司告诉CNN，他们没有发现任何证据支持这些指控，并表示公司制定了严格的政策，确保新员工不会使用来自之前工作场所的机密信息。该公司还表示，将与OpenAI合作，清除在苹果系统中发现的任何OpenAI信息。

苹果公司在一项新的诉讼中指控OpenAI使用窃取的商业机密来开发其即将推出的AI设备。

苹果指责OpenAI试图转移人们对其诉讼最初指控的注意力。这些指控来自苹果在7月份对OpenAI提起的诉讼文件中。苹果在诉讼中指控这家人工智能公司窃取了苹果的商业机密，用于开发自己的产品。苹果在最初的诉讼文件中称，一些跳槽到OpenAI的前员工下载了机密文件，并敦促求职者携带苹果的零部件参加OpenAI的面试。OpenAI否认了这些指控，称苹果未能查明任何被窃取的商业机密，并已寻求驳回此案。

两家公司都在竞相开发人工智能设备。本周，苹果公司发布了HomeView，这是近十年来苹果进军智能家居市场的最大举措，它搭载了全新升级的Siri，使其成为苹果人工智能战略的关键组成部分。OpenAI也在研发一款人工智能设备，据报道是一款小型无屏幕智能音箱。去年，OpenAI聘请了苹果前产品设计总监乔尼·艾维及其公司io，负责公司整体的设计和创意工作。

尽管硅谷的工程师和研究人员经常更换公司，但苹果公司在一份法庭文件中表示，OpenAI 已经聘用了其 400 多名前员工。

CNN的Lisa Eadicicco对本报道亦有贡献。