Elon Musk accuses Apple of favoring OpenAI in App Store ranking, threatens legal action

Elon Musk accuses Apple of favoring OpenAI's ChatGPT in the App Store ranking, alleging an antitrust violation. Musk threatens legal action against Apple, stating that xAI's AI model Grok cannot reach the top spot despite being the #1 news app worldwide. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman responds, claiming that Musk manipulates X to benefit himself and harm competitors. Apple has not responded to the allegations.

Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has accused Apple of favoring OpenAI's ChatGPT in its App Store rankings, alleging an antitrust violation. Musk's claims center around his AI startup, xAI, and its chatbot Grok, which he argues cannot reach the top spot despite being the #1 news app worldwide. Musk has threatened immediate legal action against Apple, stating that the tech giant's ranking system makes it impossible for any AI company other than OpenAI to reach the top position [1].

Musk's accusations come at a time when Apple's stock has been under significant pressure, down nearly 20% so far in 2025, losing more than $750 billion in market value [1]. This decline is partly due to investor disappointment around Apple's artificial intelligence efforts, with its "Apple Intelligence" suite failing to impress. Apple's partnership with OpenAI, announced in June 2024, has also been a point of contention, as it integrates ChatGPT more deeply with iPhones, iPads, and Macs [1].

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has responded to Musk's claims, questioning Musk's manipulation of X for his own business interests and to harm competitors. Altman highlighted Musk's past actions and suggested that Musk's accusations are hypocritical [2]. Apple has yet to publicly respond to Musk's latest accusations.

The broader implications of this dispute are significant. With over 1 billion iPhone users worldwide, App Store rankings can make or break new technologies seeking widespread adoption. Musk has positioned Grok as a transparent and less censored alternative to ChatGPT, seeking to disrupt the existing market that he helped create when he co-founded OpenAI in 2015 before departing in 2018 over strategic disagreements [1].

The fight between Musk and Apple reflects the high stakes in the race to dominate consumer AI platforms. Musk's broader campaign against big tech and perceived abuses of platform power could have potential implications for how digital marketplaces handle AI, app curation, and competition [1].

References:
[1] https://fortune.com/2025/08/12/elon-musk-threatens-lawsuit-apple-chatgpt-app-store-ranking/
[2] https://www.financialexpress.com/life/technology-unequivocal-antitrust-violation-elon-musk-threatens-to-sue-apple-over-app-store-bias-favoring-openai-3944040/