Last week, it was reported that a former Apple employee had been charged by the FBI with stealing trade secrets related to the company’s Project Titan autonomous driving technology. As reported by Reuters, however, Xiaolang Zhang has pleaded not guilty…
The report explains that Zhang pleaded not guilty during a hearing today in San Jose, California. Details are sparse at this point, but we do that Zhang has retained his own lawyer, Daniel Olmos, for the case.
Zhang was originally indicted by federal officials last week for stealing trade secrets. They alleged that he had stolen a 25-page blueprint for a circuit board designed for autonomous vehicles.
As we noted last week, Zhang could face as much as 10 years in prison and a fine as high as $250,000. Apple said in a statement at the time that it “takes confidentiality and the protection of our intellectual property very seriously.” He was arrested at a Silicon Valley airport before boarding a flight to China.
At this point, details are still sparse as for the future of the case, but we’ll be sure to keep you updated as we learn more.
