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Apple has been ordered to pay $5.7bn (£4.3bn) in damages after a US jury concluded that the technology giant used another company’s technology without permission. The decision concerns vibration systems incorporated into products including the iPhone and Apple Watch.

Audio company Taction Technology brought its claim in 2021, accusing Apple of infringing two patents covering haptics systems. Those systems generate vibrations in response to actions such as receiving a message or pressing a button.

Haptics simulate touch or physical sensation through vibrations, allowing users to interact with electronic devices in a more tactile way. The technology has become common in smartphones, watches and video game controllers equipped with small motors that respond to electronic signals.

Apple denied using Taction’s vibration technology and said it would appeal the verdict. The company disputed both the jury’s conclusion and the size of the damages award.

“While we thank the jury for their consideration, we strongly disagree with today's verdict and the damages awarded, which are entirely unsupported by the facts,” it said.

“Apple's Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction's technology, which Taction's own testing of Apple's products confirmed during trial.”

Apple introduced its Taptic Engine system with the Apple Watch in 2014. The system enables haptic feedback in Apple devices and has been improved over time as the company expanded the use of haptics across its products.

Taction, which makes headphones and gaming headsets, argued that those improvements infringed patents issued to the company in 2020. Its complaint alleged that better haptic vibrations helped Apple improve the overall experience of people using its devices.

The audio company accused Apple of capitalising on Taction’s innovation and success through the sale of devices that infringed its patents. Taction also claimed that Apple had used its inventions without license or authority.

The legal dispute previously produced a different result for Apple. A San Diego judge ruled in 2023 that the company had not infringed Taction’s patents, giving Apple an earlier victory in the case.

An appeal was subsequently taken up by a federal appeal circuit. That process resulted in a September jury trial at the US District Court for the Southern District of California, where the case ultimately moved in Taction’s favor.

Friday’s verdict imposed the $5.7bn damages award, but jurors did not find that Apple had infringed the patents willingly. Apple’s planned appeal means the company will continue challenging the result and the damages assessed against it.

The litigation centers on technology that has become a defining feature of modern consumer electronics. Vibrations can notify users of incoming messages, confirm button presses and create physical feedback without requiring a conventional mechanical response.

For Taction, the case focused on whether Apple’s improvements crossed the line into patented technology belonging to another company. For Apple, the dispute rests on its insistence that the Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction’s inventions.

The verdict is one of several patent cases Apple has defended in recent years. In November 2025, a judge ordered the company to pay $634m to medical technology firm Masimo after a jury found that Apple had infringed a patent involving blood oxygen reading technology.

The latest award is substantially larger than the Masimo payment cited in the source and places another major patent judgment before Apple. Although the jury sided with Taction, Apple has made clear that it rejects the verdict and intends to keep fighting it.

DISCLAIMER: GoldInvestors.news is not a registered investment, legal or tax advisor or broker/dealer. All investment/financial opinions expressed by GoldInvestors.news are from the personal research and experience of the owner of the site and are intended as educational material. Although best efforts are made to ensure that all information is accurate and up to date, occasionally unintended errors and misprints may occur.