Apple accuses Vision Pro engineer of trade secret theft
Apple is taking legal action against a former Vision Pro engineer, alleging he stole confidential headset data before moving to Snap. The tech giant filed a lawsuit in California, claiming the employee downloaded thousands of sensitive documents from internal systems just before resigning. This case highlights growing concerns around intellectual property security as major companies race to dominate the AR/VR space.
Apple accuses Vision Pro engineer of stealing data
According to Apple’s complaint, Di Liu, a former senior design engineer on the Vision Pro team, allegedly transferred large volumes of proprietary files to a personal cloud storage account before leaving the company. Apple says Liu falsely claimed health reasons for his departure, failing to disclose that he had already accepted a job at Snap. Because Liu didn’t admit he was joining a competitor, Apple didn’t immediately revoke his access to internal systems—giving him the opportunity to gather highly sensitive information related to its Vision Pro headset.
Deliberate efforts to hide stolen Vision Pro secrets
Apple accuses Liu of deliberately selecting and reorganizing confidential files before uploading them to his personal storage. The company’s internal logs reportedly show that Liu deleted these files afterward, in what Apple describes as an effort to cover his tracks. Although Apple says it cannot confirm the exact contents of the stolen data, it points to significant overlap between its proprietary information and Snap’s AR Spectacles projects—raising suspicions about Liu’s intent to use Apple’s technology elsewhere.
Apple seeks damages as Snap distances itself
While Snap is not named as a defendant, Apple is seeking financial damages from Liu and demanding the return of the stolen materials. In response, Snap said it had reviewed Apple’s allegations and found no evidence that Liu’s conduct involved his role at the company. This lawsuit is part of a broader trend, as Apple has taken similar legal steps in the past against former employees accused of leaking or misusing company secrets. The outcome of this case could have wide-reaching implications for trade secret enforcement in the tech industry.
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