The drama between two of tech’s biggest names just got a whole lot juicier.
On Monday, Elon Musk announced that his artificial intelligence company, xAI, plans to take “immediate legal action” against Apple. His accusation? That the tech giant is unfairly boosting OpenAI’s ChatGPT in the App Store — while keeping competitors like xAI’s own Grok out of the spotlight.
Musk’s complaint targets Apple’s App Store curation practices, specifically the “Must Have” section and overall app rankings. In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Musk questioned Apple’s editorial decisions:
“Hey @Apple App Store, why do you refuse to put either X or Grok in your ‘Must Have’ section when X is the #1 news app in the world and Grok is #5 among all apps? Are you playing politics? What gives? Inquiring minds want to know.”
He escalated his criticism further, claiming:
“Apple is behaving in a manner that makes it impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store, which is an unequivocal antitrust violation.”
As of now, ChatGPT is sitting pretty in the #1 spot among free U.S. App Store apps, while Grok hovers around #5 or #6. Google’s Gemini? Way down in the 50s. And while ChatGPT appears in Apple’s coveted “Must Have Apps” list, Grok is nowhere to be seen.
The tension comes after Apple’s splashy 2024 partnership with OpenAI, which brought ChatGPT directly into iPhones and Macs. That includes letting Siri call on ChatGPT for tough questions, system-wide writing tools powered by the chatbot, and extra AI muscle for Apple’s own “Apple Intelligence” features.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman didn’t hold back in his response to Musk’s allegations.
“This is a remarkable claim given what I have heard alleged that Elon does to manipulate X to benefit himself and his own companies,”
He posted on X.
Altman also hinted that if Musk follows through with a lawsuit, the discovery process could reveal some “interesting” details about Musk’s own business practices.
Musk’s threat comes as Apple is already facing antitrust heat — from the Epic Games lawsuit, billion-dollar fines from the EU over its music streaming service, and a Justice Department suit accusing it of monopolizing the iPhone ecosystem.
While Musk hasn’t offered hard proof of his claims, the battle speaks to a bigger fight for dominance in the booming AI world — and a personal rivalry between Musk and Altman that’s been simmering since Musk left OpenAI’s board in 2018.
Apple hasn’t responded to the latest salvo. Whether Musk’s legal threat turns into an actual lawsuit or just another chapter in Silicon Valley’s ongoing billionaire showdown remains to be seen.
