How a Screen‑Sharing Slip Exposed Nvidia to a Multi‑Million Dollar IP Lawsuit

Nvidia employee Mohammad Moniruzzaman unintentionally left his screen‑sharing on after a joint video conference with Valeo engineers, exposing a window that displayed Valeo's proprietary source code repository named "ValeoDocs".

Valeo, a long‑standing French automotive supplier, and Nvidia, a newer entrant in the automotive market with its Nvidia Drive platform launched at CES 2015, were collaborating on a parking‑assist project for a major OEM, requiring joint meetings to discuss hardware and software data.

During the March 8 2022 meeting, after presenting his PPT, Mohammad minimized it but failed to stop screen sharing, allowing participants to see the confidential code files, which Valeo engineers immediately recognized and screenshotted.

Valeo’s lawsuit alleges that Mohammad had previously copied four repositories containing over 2,700 files and more than 6 GB of source code covering ultrasonic sensor data processing, parking‑space measurement, maneuvering, and emergency braking, and that he transferred these files to his Nvidia workstation via a USB drive.

In September 2023, a German court convicted Mohammad of illegal acquisition, use, and disclosure of trade secrets, imposing a €14,400 fine; he also admitted using the stolen code while employed at Nvidia.

Valeo subsequently sued Nvidia, claiming the stolen code gave Nvidia a shortcut that saved millions of dollars in development costs and that the code had been shared among Nvidia engineers, making complete removal unrealistic.

Nvidia’s legal team responded that the company was unaware of the theft until May 2022, that the code existed only on Mohammad’s laptop, that they have no interest in Valeo’s proprietary software, and that they are fully cooperating with the investigation.