# The car that got taken three times: Apple’s self-driving car in three spying cases

Apple’s self-driving car project shows up in three separate cases, more than any other company on the list. One ended in a guilty plea and 120 days in prison. Two are charged and unproven.

Updated November 10, 2026. Interactive version: https://www.autumn.ai/resources/china-spy-cases/apple-car

## 2018: Circuit boards

**What was taken:** Engineering schematics for a circuit board, plus reference manuals and documents describing prototypes. The engineer worked on the team that designed and tested circuit boards for the car’s sensors.

**How it came out:** He resigned after a trip to China and said he was joining a Chinese electric vehicle company. Apple found downloads from its databases. Lab cameras showed him removing hardware, according to the complaint.

**What happened:** 120 days (Pleaded guilty). Arrested at the San Jose airport in July 2018. Pleaded guilty in August 2022. Sentenced in 2024.

Sources: [CNBC: guilty plea in the first Apple car case, August 22, 2022](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/22/former-apple-employee-xiaolang-zhang-pleads-guilty-.html); [Engadget: sentence in the first Apple car case, February 2024](https://www.engadget.com/ex-apple-engineer-sentenced-to-six-months-in-prison-for-stealing-self-driving-car-tech-110537599.html)

## 2019: Project files

**What prosecutors say was taken:** Trade secrets from the car division. The case names files from the self-driving car project.

**How it came out:** Charged in early 2019. Like the first engineer, he had planned to travel to China, according to reporting on the case.

**What happened:** No verdict (Charged · unproven). He pleaded not guilty. No public resolution has been found. These are allegations; he is presumed innocent.

Sources: [CNBC: guilty plea in the first Apple car case, August 22, 2022](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/22/former-apple-employee-xiaolang-zhang-pleads-guilty-.html); [CourtListener: docket for the second Apple car case](https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/14541958/united-states-v-chen/)

## 2023: Source code

**What prosecutors say was taken:** Six categories of material, the indictment says. The first one on the list: the entire autonomy source code.

**How it came out:** After he left, Apple’s access logs showed large amounts of sensitive material accessed in his last days. Agents searched his home in June 2018. He boarded a one-way flight to Guangzhou that night, the indictment says.

**What happened:** No verdict (Charged · unproven). Indicted in May 2023, five years after the search. He is outside the US. These are allegations; he is presumed innocent.

Sources: [US Attorney, N.D. California: indictment in the third Apple car case, May 16, 2023](https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/former-apple-employee-charged-theft-trade-secrets)

## Sources

- [CNBC: guilty plea in the first Apple car case, August 22, 2022](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/08/22/former-apple-employee-xiaolang-zhang-pleads-guilty-.html)
- [Engadget: sentence in the first Apple car case, February 2024](https://www.engadget.com/ex-apple-engineer-sentenced-to-six-months-in-prison-for-stealing-self-driving-car-tech-110537599.html)
- [CourtListener: docket for the second Apple car case](https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/14541958/united-states-v-chen/)
- [US Attorney, N.D. California: indictment in the third Apple car case, May 16, 2023](https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/former-apple-employee-charged-theft-trade-secrets)

Only cases that name the company are counted; many never do. “Charged” cases are unproven allegations and defendants are presumed innocent. Compiled by Autumn (https://www.autumn.ai).