Billionaire Elon Musk has announced plans for his artificial intelligence startup, xAI, to take legal action against Apple, accusing the tech giant of breaching antitrust regulations through the way it manages App Store rankings.
In a post on his social media platform X, Musk alleged that Apple is favoring OpenAI’s ChatGPT in the App Store’s rankings, making it “impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1.” He described this as “an unequivocal antitrust violation” and vowed that xAI would act immediately.
Currently, ChatGPT holds the top spot in the App Store’s “Top Free Apps” section for iPhones in the United States, while xAI’s chatbot Grok ranks fifth. Google’s Gemini AI assistant sits much lower at 57th. ChatGPT also dominates the Google Play Store rankings, according to data from analytics firm Sensor Tower.
Apple has an ongoing partnership with OpenAI, which integrates ChatGPT into iPhones, iPads, and Macs a collaboration Musk suggests may be influencing the rankings. In an earlier post, he questioned why neither X nor Grok appears in Apple’s “Must Have” section despite their high positions in other rankings, implying political bias in Apple’s decisions.
The accusations come amid growing scrutiny of Apple’s App Store practices from regulators and competitors. In April, a U.S. judge ruled that Apple violated a court order requiring it to allow more competition in the App Store, referring the matter to federal prosecutors for a criminal contempt investigation in a case brought by Fortnite creator Epic Games.
That same month, the European Commission fined Apple €500 million ($587 million) for breaching the EU’s Digital Markets Act, citing restrictions that prevented developers from directing users to cheaper deals outside of the App Store.
Neither Apple, OpenAI, nor xAI immediately responded to requests for comment on Musk’s allegations. The legal threat adds to the mounting pressure on Apple as it faces global regulatory challenges over its App Store control a central pillar of its business model.
If Musk follows through, the case could further ignite the debate over whether tech giants are unfairly shaping digital marketplaces to favor select partners, potentially reshaping competition rules in the AI app sector.
