© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Apple logo is seen hanging at the entrance of the Apple store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, New York, U.S., October 16, 2019. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo
By Blake Brittain
(Reuters) – Apple (NASDAQ ) plans to settle a lawsuit that accused tech startup Rivos of stealing its trade secrets related to computer chip technology, according to a joint court filing filed on Friday in federal court in California.
The companies told the US District Court for the Northern District of California that they had “signed an agreement that potentially resolves the case” and that the agreement allows Apple to examine Rivos' systems and recover any confidential information.
Representatives for Apple and Rivos did not immediately respond to requests for comment and more information about the deal.
Apple sued “shadow” startup Rivos in 2022. It said Mountain View, California-based Rivos had hired dozens of its engineers and used its confidential information to develop competing “system-on-chip” (SoC) technology. .
SoCs are integrated circuits with multiple computing components on a single chip, including central processing units and graphics processing units. Apple said in the lawsuit that it spent billions of dollars and more than a decade of research on its SoC designs, and that they have “revolutionized the worlds of personal and mobile computing.”
Rivos denied the allegations and claimed that Apple had “sought to punish Rivos and any Apple employees who might seek to work there from the moment Apple learned of the promising startup.” Last September he filed a countersuit against Apple for unfair competition.
Apple settled claims related to the case last month against six former employees who left the company to join Rivos.
