Apple accuses Oppo of espionage: He downloaded dozens of documents and quit his job

Tech giant Apple Inc. has accused Chinese smartphone maker Oppo of stealing trade secrets by transferring an employee from its Apple Watch team at a high salary.

According to a lawsuit cited by Bloomberg, Apple's sensor system architect, Chen Shi, accessed confidential documents related to Apple's health-sensing technologies before joining Oppo in June. According to the company's complaint, Shi participated in dozens of one-on-one meetings related to Apple Watch research while concealing his move to the rival firm.

Apple also alleged that Shi downloaded 63 documents from a protected folder and transferred them to a USB stick during the night just three days before leaving Apple.

FALSE STATEMENTS AND SECRET MESSAGES

According to the complaint, Shi told colleagues that he was returning to China to "care for his aging parents." Apple, however, stated that he had actually transferred to Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp.

The lawsuit alleges that Shi told an executive from Oppo's health division that he had "collected as much information as possible and would share it," to which the Oppo executive sent an "okay" message and an approval emoji.

In court documents, Apple argued that such actions would "undermine Apple's commitment to innovation and its investments in pioneering technologies like Apple Watch." The company emphasized that it is unacceptable for trade secrets to give competitors an advantage.