Judge sets July 19, 2027 trial in Apple trade secrets case against OpenAI

For Apple, the case is about more than a single set of files. It is a test of how aggressively it can police talent moves and protect pre-release product work, especially as the industry’s current race is not only about chips and screens, but also about on-device AI features that depend on tight hardware and software integration.

Neither side has provided a public, detailed account of the specific hardware designs at the centre of the dispute. What is clear from the schedule is that the fight is no longer hypothetical. It is now on the clock.

Touch arrives on MacBook Pro

The legal news landed a day after Apple unveiled its first touchscreen Mac. On October 28, Apple introduced a new MacBook Pro with a tandem OLED display it calls PROLED XDR, and said the touch sensor sits inside the display rather than on top of it, a design Apple says reduces latency.

The notebooks come in 14-inch and 16-inch sizes and are powered by the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips. Pre-orders opened on October 28 in 30 countries and regions, with first deliveries due on Friday, November 6.

Pricing is unambiguously aimed at the top end. The 14-inch touchscreen MacBook Pro starts at $2,899, and the 16-inch model starts at $3,399. M5 Max versions start at $4,499 and $4,799.

Apple chief executive Tim Cook marked the launch on X, writing: “We brought Touch to the Mac!” He added that creators “have new tools to do their best work yet.”

Apple says macOS treats taps as clicks, allowing existing apps to work with touch without developers having to rebuild their software immediately. Touch gestures include swipe-to-scroll, pinch-to-zoom, and double-tapping a window to fill the screen. The company also says a redesigned hinge is intended to keep the display stable while it is being touched.

The decision to debut touch on the MacBook Pro, rather than a lower-cost notebook, has already prompted debate among reviewers and buyers. With the entry price close to $3,000, the first touchscreen Mac is positioned as a tool for professionals rather than a mass-market feature that quickly spreads across a lineup.

A broader product cycle

The MacBook Pro announcement is part of a wider Apple cycle that spans devices and services. Apple’s core product categories remain led by the iPhone, alongside the Mac, iPad, and wearables such as Apple Watch and AirPods. On the software side, iOS and macOS sit alongside Apple Intelligence, the company’s personal intelligence system integrated into supported devices, and services including iCloud, Apple Music, Apple TV+, the App Store and Apple Pay.

Hardware launches are also continuing beyond the MacBook Pro. Apple’s new iMac with the M6 is set to launch on November 6, with preorders already open.

In wearables, promotions have begun to bite. One current deal offers $129 off an LTE-powered Apple Watch Series 11 in a specific colour, sold new and backed by an Apple warranty.

The mix of premium launches and discounting underlines a familiar Apple strategy: keep older, cheaper options in the channel while charging early adopters and professionals for new features. One investor-focused analysis of the touchscreen MacBook Pro framed touch as a $400 premium on the 14-inch model compared with a similar configuration without it, suggesting the company is trying to recover higher component costs through optional upgrades rather than a blanket price rise.

Investors will be watching how Apple talks about pricing power and margins at its next scheduled moment in the spotlight on November 2. The Mac is a smaller slice of Apple’s overall business than the iPhone, but the debut of touch on a Mac is symbolically large, coming after years in which Apple resisted the idea even as touch became standard on many competing laptops.

Now Apple faces two parallel tests. One is market-driven: whether buyers accept touch arriving first on the most expensive notebooks. The other is legal: whether a jury ultimately agrees that hardware ideas, not just code, can be protected in a world where top engineers and designers change employers quickly.