Apple faces record $5.7 billion patent verdict over haptic technology: Here’s why

A US jury has ordered Apple to pay San Diego-based Taction Technology more than $5.7 billion over a patent dispute involving haptic technology used to power the vibrational feedback in iPhones and Apple Watches as the case centers on technology used to provide haptic feedback in electronic devices.

According to Reuters, the jury said on Friday that Apple’s Taptic Engine infringes patents when finding a breach of a legal agreement.

Apple said in a response stating, “Apple's Taptic Engine is ​fundamentally different from Taction's technology, which Taction's own testing of Apple's products confirmed during trial.”

Apple said in a statement that it does not use Taction’s technology and will appeal; though Taction attorney Lance Yang clarified that they are happy with the jury found for Taction and defended its patent rights; Taction, uses its technology in headphones and gaming headsets, commenced the lawsuits in 2021.

Nonetheless, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit revived the case last year after a San Diego federal judge ruled in 2023 that Apple did not encroach upon a patent.