Electric car battery maker A123 Systems filed a lawsuit against Apple earlier this month for poaching its employees, reports Law360. The company says the Cupertino firm began an “aggressive campaign” around June of last year to recruit some of its most critical staffers for a new large-scale battery division.
This directly violates the company’s noncompete and nondisclosure agreements, says A123 Systems, and the poaching has resulted in a substantial loss of investment and left them scrambling to find replacements. It’s asking the court for undisclosed damages and a 1-year order, barring them from moving.
According to A123 Systems web page, the firm makes “advanced energy storage for electric-drive vehicles,” so the fact that it’s suing Apple and its former employees for violating a non-compete clause adds further credence to the recent rumors that Apple has a secret project involving building an electric car.
Rumors began circulating earlier this month that Apple is interested in building a car. The company is said to have assembled a team of hundreds of engineers from both within and outside the company, at a top secret research lab in Silicon Valley, to begin work on what is believed to be an electric, self-driving vehicle.