SOMERVILLE, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A Somerville start-up company is suing a former employee, and Facebook, for stealing what it calls the company's "secret sauce."
Neural Magic is a three-year-old artificial intelligence company.
It's very first employee, Aleksander Zlateski, was the technology director. He helped develop the company's proprietary software, but after 18 months, left the company to join Facebook.
Six months later, Neural Magic claims Facebook released to the world as open-source code a "compiler," which is a computer program that takes code from different coding languages and translates it into the code language that can be used by a computer's processor.
Neural Magic says the compiler contained the same "secret sauce" that Zlateski co-authored while at the startup.
Neural Magic accuses both Zlateski and Facebook of stealing trade secrets in violation of state law, the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act, and unfair trade practices. The suit also alleges Zlateski breached his nondisclosure contract with Neural Magic by spilling its trade secrets.
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(Neural Magic)