A US jury has ruled that Apple owes Taction Technology, a San Diego-based company, more than $5.7 billion. The reason: Apple’s use of patented technology in the haptic feedback of the iPhone and Apple Watch — the vibration felt when a notification arrives or a setting is changed.
The Taptic Engine is the component that generates the taps and vibrations felt when interacting with an Apple device. The verdict is the largest ever handed down by a jury in the United States and the biggest patent-infringement award in the country’s history. Apple has already said it will appeal.
What happened
Taction filed the lawsuit in 2021 in a California federal district court. At the center of the claim are two patents — No. 10,659,885 and No. 10,820,117 — covering tactile transduction and vibration technology designed to let a device user feel a physical response to their touch. The jury found that Apple infringed both.
The case took a winding path to trial. In 2023, a district court ruled that Apple had not infringed the patents, but in 2025 the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reopened the case, finding that the judge had abused his discretion in interpreting the patent claims.
The trial began on September 14, 2026, with seven jurors deliberating for two days before reaching a verdict this past Friday, September 25. The jury found the infringement was not willful — an important distinction, since it rules out the enhanced damages reserved for intentional violations.
Apple, as expected, is preparing to contest the ruling. The company argues the Taptic Engine relies on different technology from Taction’s, a position it says was backed by testing presented during the trial, meaning the damages award has no basis. During the trial, Apple also argued that the patents themselves were invalid.
What happens next
The damages figure is not yet final. The case now moves to a post-trial phase before the judge, where Apple can contest the size of the award before appealing. Any appeal would go back to the Federal Circuit — the same court that reopened the case. Apple is unlikely to have to pay the full sum while the proceedings continue.
Historical precedent with this kind of multibillion-dollar verdict counsels caution: awards of this size are frequently reduced or overturned on appeal. For now, the ruling carries mostly symbolic weight, calling into question one of the most widely used features on Apple’s devices.
Editor’s note
This article was originally published in Italian on money.it by Pasquale Conte on September 28, 2026 as «Apple colpita da una maxi-multa da 5,7 miliardi, violati i brevetti sulla vibrazione di iPhone e Apple Watch». It has been translated and adapted for an international audience by the Money.it International desk.
