Apple jury awards Taction $5.7 billion in haptic patent case

A federal jury in San Diego found on 25 September that Apple's Taptic Engine, the haptic feedback system built into iPhones and Apple Watches, infringed two patents held by Taction Technology. The award of $5.7 billion is the largest patent damages verdict on record in the United States.

Taction, whose technology is used in headphones and gaming headsets, filed the original suit in 2021. A federal judge ruled in Apple's favour in 2023, finding no infringement. The U.S. Court of Appeals reversed that decision and returned the case to trial.

Apple said it will appeal. "Apple's Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction's technology, which Taction's own testing of Apple's products confirmed during trial," the company said in a statement.

The verdict arrives as Apple is operating under new chief executive John Ternus, who took over from Tim Cook earlier this month.

No prediction market contract on the outcome of this litigation has been identified on major platforms.

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James Harrington

Senior Risk Analyst

Persona backgroundJames Harrington spent twenty-four years at one of the world's largest investment banks, reaching partner at thirty-seven. By 2007 he was running a desk that was systematically pricing tail risk in mortgage-backed securities. He was right for eighteen months before the crisis arrived.