Apple settles lawsuit with ex-employee over Vision Pro trade secrets after he makes a public apology saying: 'I dumbly...'

Apple has settled its trade secret lawsuit against Di Liu, a former Vision Pro engineer who spent his last days at the company quietly copying thousands of confidential files to his personal iCloud—while telling colleagues he was leaving to focus on his health.The settlement, filed with the Santa Clara County Superior Court this week, requires Liu to return all Apple confidential material and pay an undisclosed amount in damages. Liu also posted a public apology on LinkedIn, writing that he "dumbly downloaded Apple confidential information" and called it "a lapse in judgment."

He had a Snap offer in hand for two weeks before Apple found out

Liu resigned from Apple in late October 2024. What he told his manager: he wanted more time with his family.

What he didn't mention: Snap had already sent him an offer letter eighteen days earlier. Apple, none the wiser, gave him the standard two-week notice period—full system access included.He made use of it. Three days before his last day, Liu copied over a dozen folders from his work laptop into a personal iCloud folder he named, somewhat boldly, "Knowledge." The files included design schematics, supply chain data, R&D records, and internal documents stamped Apple Confidential—many tied to Vision Pro, where Liu had worked as a system product design engineer since 2017.

The lawsuit cost him the Snap job too

Apple filed suit in June 2025. Liu left Snap the same month—and hasn't worked there since. In his LinkedIn post, he acknowledged the consequences have "created significant impediments" in his personal and professional life. That tracks: going from a senior engineering role at Apple to unemployed inside a year is a steep fall.Snap is not a defendant in the case. The company said it had "no reason to believe" the matter was connected to Liu's work there.