OpenAI asks court to dismiss Apple trade-secret lawsuit, setting up another test of AI IP claims

OpenAI has asked a federal judge to throw out a lawsuit filed by Apple that accuses the artificial intelligence company of stealing trade secrets, according to a report published by Yahoo Finance that cites Bloomberg’s coverage. The motion seeks dismissal of the case, arguing that Apple’s allegations are not sufficient to proceed, according to the report.

Apple’s lawsuit, filed in federal court, centers on the claim that OpenAI misappropriated trade secrets. Trade secrets are non-public business information that a company protects through confidentiality steps, and they are often used in technology disputes when a firm alleges that proprietary know-how was taken without permission.

OpenAI’s filing frames the matter as a legal deficiency in Apple’s complaint rather than a dispute that should be resolved by a fact-finding process such as discovery and trial. In other words, OpenAI is attempting to end the case at the pleadings stage by contending that even Apple’s stated allegations do not meet the standard required for the claims to survive.

The procedural posture matters for both sides. A motion to dismiss, if granted, would end the case without a merits ruling on whether wrongdoing occurred. If denied, it would keep the litigation alive and move the parties toward the next phases, where the scope of evidence and legal theories typically becomes the center of the dispute.

For the broader technology sector, the fight underscores the growing friction around AI development and competitive advantage, where companies increasingly characterize model-building methods, datasets, and engineering know-how as valuable proprietary assets. As AI capabilities and hiring in the field intensify, trade secret lawsuits have become one of the main tools companies use to police perceived information leakage or misappropriation.

Even with the motion reported by Yahoo Finance, many details remain unclear from the public account described here. The report does not provide the full text of OpenAI’s arguments, the specific trade-secret categories Apple alleges were taken, or the legal grounds the judge may apply in deciding whether the case can proceed. The court’s reasoning, once available, will likely determine what factual disputes are considered material and what claims survive.

In the near term, the key development to watch is how the judge rules on the motion to dismiss, and whether any claims are narrowed or re-pleaded. If the dismissal attempt fails, both companies would typically move toward discovery, which can expose timelines, internal communications, and technical descriptions of the alleged proprietary information at issue. If the motion succeeds, the dispute could shift into a new filing or stop entirely, depending on whether Apple can amend its complaint.