Apple sues former employee for Watch trade secret theft for OPPO

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Apple has filed a lawsuit against a former senior employee, accusing him of stealing sensitive information about Apple Watch technology before jumping ship to Chinese smartphone giant OPPO.

The employee, Dr. Chen Shi, once served as a sensor system architect at Apple, where he worked closely on the company’s health monitoring features. 

According to the complaint, Shi had “a front row seat” to Apple’s most confidential projects, including next-generation roadmaps, design documents, and specifications for advanced ECG sensors.

But Apple alleges Shi misused that access in the weeks before his departure. 

The lawsuit claims he attended “dozens” of internal meetings with Apple Watch engineers, downloaded 63 protected files from the company’s servers, and transferred them to a personal USB drive. 

Investigators also say Shi sent messages to OPPO, promising he was “collecting as much information as possible” before officially joining its ranks. (Via: The Verge) 

Adding to the suspicion, Apple says Shi ran Google searches on his company-issued MacBook for phrases such as “how to wipe out macbook” and “Can somebody see if I’ve opened a file on a shared drive?” just days before leaving.

Shi officially resigned in 2023, telling Apple he was leaving for “personal and family reasons.” 

But according to the lawsuit, messages later recovered from his Apple-issued iPhone revealed that OPPO not only knew about his efforts but “encouraged, approved, and agreed to Dr. Shi’s plan to collect Apple’s proprietary information.”

Shi now reportedly leads a team focused on sensing technology at OPPO, a detail Apple says it pieced together from his communications left behind on that same iPhone.

The lawsuit underscores Apple’s long-standing concern over leaks of its closely guarded product research, particularly in the competitive wearables space where health-tracking features have become a major differentiator. 

If Apple’s claims hold up, the case could spark fresh tensions between US and Chinese tech companies over intellectual property.

Should companies have stronger legal protections against employees stealing trade secrets for foreign competitors? Is Apple’s lawsuit justified, or are these the normal risks of hiring talent in a competitive global tech market? Tell us below in the comments, or reach us via our Twitter or Facebook.