Halide co-founder is suing Sebastiaan de With for taking code to Apple
Lux Optics co-founder Sebastiaan de With made headlines when he joined Apple in late January. The company was behind Halide, one of the most popular photography apps for iPhone, which gained a cult following for its robust, pro-level controls.
Apple was apparently enough of a fan that it attempted to acquire the developer last summer. Those talks never came to fruition, and the company ultimately simply hired De With. At the time, it was widely believed that Apple had poached him from Lux. But new allegations from a lawsuit filed by co-founder Ben Sandofsky in California Superior Court in Santa Cruz claim de With was fired for financial misconduct in December 2025.
According to The informationthe suit “accuses de With of improperly using more than $150,000 of Lux company funds to pay for personal expenses,” as well as “taking Lux’s source code and confidential documents with him when he joined Apple.”
A lawyer for De With denied the claims and said “the attempt to involve Apple in this dispute appears designed to create leverage and attract attention.” »
