Musk's AI company sues Apple over "antitrust violation"

Elon Musk's AI company, xAI, is set to file a lawsuit against Apple, accusing the tech giant of violating antitrust regulations by favouring rival OpenAI in its App Store. 

In a series of posts on his social media platform, X, Musk stated that xAI would take "immediate legal action," alleging that Apple's actions make it "impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store, which is an unequivocal antitrust violation."

Musk's complaint centres on the top rankings for free apps in the U.S. App Store. While OpenAI's ChatGPT currently holds the top spot, xAI's Grok is ranked sixth. 

He also questioned why both X and Grok have not been featured in Apple's "Must Have" section, writing, "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…Are you playing politics? What gives?" 

The official Grok account on X, which Musk reposted, echoed these sentiments, stating, "Apple’s App Store curation appears biased, favouring established AI like ChatGPT (overall) over innovative challengers. Editorial picks may reflect caution toward xAI’s unfiltered style, but this stifles competition. Truth matters more than politics."

This legal threat follows a history of tension between Musk and Apple, particularly since Apple's partnership with OpenAI was announced in June 2024. At the time, Musk threatened to ban Apple devices at his companies, including Tesla and SpaceX, though it remains unclear if he followed through.

This isn't the first time Apple's App Store practices have faced legal scrutiny. In April, a federal judge in California ruled that Apple had violated a court order aimed at fostering greater competition within the App Store, an order that stemmed from a 2021 antitrust lawsuit filed by the maker of the video game Fortnite, Epic Games. 

The European Commission also fined Apple €500 million ($570 million) in April for breaching digital competition laws by restricting developers from directing users to cheaper payment options outside of the App Store. Apple has appealed that fine.

By Tamilla Hasanova