Apple accuses startup of stealing trade secrets
Startup Rivos Inc has allegedly hired dozens of former Apple engineers to work on competing technology and stolen trade secrets in the process, according to a suit filed by Apple late last week.
Apple’s claim, filed on Friday, April 29, at the US District Court for the Northern District of California, claimed that, in June 2021, “stealth” Rivos began a "coordinated campaign to target Apple employees with access to Apple proprietary and trade secret information" about Apple’s computer-chip designs.
According to Apple, more than 40 of its former employees have been hired by California-based Rivos to work on its competing system-on-chip (SoC) technology. A SoC is an integrated circuit that integrates all or most components of a computer or other electronic system.
The majority of these former Apple employees were design engineers, developing Apple’s proprietary and trade secret SoC designs, said Apple.
"Apple has devoted billions of dollars and more than a decade of effort to develop the proprietary technologies and expertise necessary to engineer these revolutionary SoC designs and become a leader in the field of semiconductor design,” said the suit.
Allegedly, some of the employees hired by Rivos took “gigabytes of sensitive SoC specifications and design files during their last days of employment with Apple”.
It added: “Rivos targeted and solicited Apple employees who were highly experienced engineers with both substantial expertise with SoC design and significant and extensive access to trade secrets at the core of Apple’s SoC designs.
“Apple has reason to believe that Rivos instructed at least some Apple employees to download and install apps for encrypted communications (e.g., the Signal app) before communicating with them further.”
Two former Apple employees were named specifically in the suit, with Apple alleging that the duo took thousands of files and other confidential information with them.
“Apple welcomes and values open competition and the innovation that can result. But that competition cannot be built on the back of trade secret theft,” said the suit.
Apple has asked the court for damages or, in lieu of damages, a reasonably royalty, injunctive relief and an order directing Rivos to return all of Apple’s property in its possession and cease use of the trade secrets.
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