Elon Musk escalated his legal fight in artificial intelligence as his companies filed a lawsuit against Apple and OpenAI, alleging the firms engaged in anticompetitive behavior tied to their integration of ChatGPT on iPhones. According to the Los Angeles Times, the complaint was filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Texas and seeks a permanent injunction and more than $1 billion in damages.
xAI challenges Apple–OpenAI integration
Apple and OpenAI announced a partnership last year enabling iPhone users to access OpenAI’s chatbot, ChatGPT. Musk’s Bastrop, Texas-based X and Palo Alto-based xAI argue the arrangement “locked up markets” and maintained what they describe as Apple and OpenAI’s monopolies. The suit claims ChatGPT holds at least an 80% share of the generative AI chatbot market, while xAI’s Grok has only a few percentage points.
The filing asserts that, due to an “exclusive arrangement,” ChatGPT is the only AI chatbot benefitting from billions of user prompts originating from hundreds of millions of iPhones, hindering competitors’ ability to scale and innovate. xAI says it asked to integrate Grok directly with iOS but was not allowed. While other chatbots can be accessed via web or standalone apps, the suit contends those avenues lack the “functionality, usability, integration, or access to user prompts” afforded to ChatGPT’s first-party integration.
Responses and prior disputes
OpenAI responded, “This latest filing is consistent with Mr Musk’s ongoing pattern of harassment,” the Los Angeles Times reported. Apple did not immediately respond to the Times’ request for comment. The lawsuit also alleges Apple deprioritizes rival AI chatbot apps within the App Store.
Context: ongoing legal and public clashes
The case builds on a long-running dispute between Musk and OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman. Musk, an early OpenAI backer who later left its board and launched xAI, has a separate ongoing lawsuit accusing OpenAI and Altman of fraud and breach of contract related to changes in OpenAI’s corporate structure, the Times noted.
Earlier this month, Musk posted on X that Apple’s behavior made it “impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store,” calling it an “unequivocal antitrust violation.” Altman later replied on X, disputing Musk’s claim. Apple previously told Bloomberg that it collaborates with many developers to increase app visibility and that the App Store is designed to be “fair and free of bias,” according to the Times.
The Los Angeles Times also noted broader scrutiny of Apple’s App Store, including a Department of Justice lawsuit last year alleging Apple engaged in practices that hinder competition from rival apps.
