Camilla Jessen
Elon Musk escalates his feud with OpenAI and takes aim at Apple.
The billionaire’s AI company and social media platform X are taking on two tech giants in court, claiming an illegal partnership is blocking competition.
Musk Takes Apple and OpenAI to Court
Elon Musk has escalated his feud with OpenAI and Apple, with his companies xAI and X filing a federal lawsuit on Monday alleging the two tech giants are engaged in an “anticompetitive scheme” designed to stifle AI innovation and block rivals.
Filed in the Northern District of Texas, the lawsuit accuses Apple of giving unfair advantages to OpenAI’s ChatGPT over competing applications like Musk’s own Grok chatbot.
What the Suit Claims
The suit claims Apple is using its control over the App Store to favor OpenAI and suppress challengers in the smartphone and generative AI markets.
“In a desperate attempt to protect its monopoly in the smartphone market, Apple has allied itself with the company that benefits the most from blocking competition and innovation in AI: OpenAI,” the complaint reads, as cited by CNBC.
Grok vs. ChatGPT
According to the lawsuit, Apple’s recent integration of ChatGPT into its devices and software unfairly disadvantages alternatives like Grok, xAI’s chatbot integrated into X.
Musk argues this kind of preferential treatment violates antitrust laws and harms consumer choice.
The App Store Accusation
Apple, for its part, has denied any wrongdoing, saying its App Store is “fair and unbiased” and that it promotes apps based on a variety of factors.
Apple also pointed out that rival apps such as DeepSeek and Perplexity reached the top of App Store charts shortly after the company announced its OpenAI partnership, an argument echoed by X users through the platform’s Community Notes.
Sam Altman Fires Back
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman responded to the lawsuit with a sharp rebuttal, calling the accusations “remarkable”—especially coming from Musk, who he said is known for using his own platforms to promote his interests and shut down rivals.
Altman and Musk’s relationship has been rocky in recent years.
The two co-founded OpenAI in 2015, but Musk departed in 2018. Since then, Musk has publicly criticized the direction of OpenAI, claiming it abandoned its original mission to develop AI for the benefit of all humanity, and instead became driven by commercial gain.
In 2023, Musk filed another lawsuit against OpenAI, accusing it of putting profit above ethics. A claim OpenAI strongly rejected.
A Pattern of Legal Battles
Just earlier this month, Musk threatened to sue Apple over its OpenAI integration, calling it a “clear violation of antitrust laws.”
The court has yet to set a hearing date.
