The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has initiated legal proceedings against Amazon Web Services (AWS), alleging that AWS’s cloud computing services infringe upon two of MIT’s patents related to cryptographic security technologies. The lawsuit, filed on October 9, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, centers on the use of Physical Unclonable Function (PUF) technology, which generates unique identifiers for devices based on their intrinsic physical characteristics.
PUF technology leverages the inherent variations in semiconductor manufacturing to create unique digital fingerprints for chips, enhancing security by generating cryptographic keys that are difficult to replicate. MIT contends that AWS’s implementation of this technology, particularly through products supplied by Synopsys, infringes upon patents developed from the research of MIT Professor Srinivas Devadas and his team. These patents, U.S. Patent Nos. 7,681,103 and 7,818,569, describe methods for deriving reliable cryptographic values from the unique physical properties of integrated circuits. ([news.bloomberglaw.com](https://news.bloomberglaw.com/ip-law/mit-sues-amazon-over-data-center-computer-chip-security-tech?utm_source=openai))
While Synopsys is not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, MIT alleges that AWS’s use of Synopsys’s static random-access-memory PUF technology constitutes patent infringement. The university is seeking unspecified monetary damages for the alleged violations. ([marketscreener.com](https://www.marketscreener.com/news/mit-sues-amazon-web-services-alleging-infringement-on-cryptography-patents-update-ce785dddd88cf42c?utm_source=openai))
This legal action follows a similar lawsuit filed by MIT against Microsoft in May 2026, which also pertains to alleged patent infringements involving PUF technology. That case is currently ongoing. ([fudzilla.com](https://fudzilla.com/mit-takes-amazon-to-court-over-chip-security-tech/?utm_source=openai))
As of now, AWS has not publicly responded to the allegations. The outcome of this lawsuit could have significant implications for the use of PUF technology in cloud computing services and the broader tech industry.