Apple accuses startup of stealing industrial secrets

More than 40 Apple employees left in record time last year to join start-up Rivos, which specializes in making chips. Something to alert Apple, which is now suing this company in California court. The folder is thick.

Coordinated targeting campaign

Brain draining engineers who were working on the first generation of Apple M SoCs, the American giant are convinced that it was a deliberate attempt to steal industrial secrets. It thus denounces a coordinated campaign by Rivos starting in June 2021 to target qualified people and hire them for the exact same jobs. Then Apple sent him a letter reminding him of the confidentiality obligation his former customers were subject to. But the message was not answered.

Apple will also have evidence of data theft from its former engineers. They were going to use USB keys and airdrop To download confidential information to their personal device or iCloud account, such as Signal Mac rumors. Among the stolen data are presentations of future SoCs project. Then they tried to hide their tracks. Apple also argues that Rivos could have orchestrated everything by communicating with them via encrypted messages.

Apple asks for damages

Two employees have been named. They are Bhasi Kaithamana and Ricky Win. They were going to take thousands of files and hundreds of gigabytes of data with them between July and August 2021.

Apple said this could allow Rivos to significantly speed up the development of competing SoCs. As a result, the American giant is asking the court to ensure that Rivos is prevented from using this information, as well as that former employees return what was stolen and that compensation is paid.

It must be said that Apple has spent billions of dollars in research and development to develop its own Ax and now Mx ​​chips. This strategy has enabled it not only to become more independent from OEMs, but also to improve the performance of its products, and to gain greater control over its design.

source : Mac rumors