Elon Musk Slams Apple for ‘Rigging’ App Store in Favour of ChatGPT, Threatens Legal Action

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has launched a fresh attack on Apple, accusing the iPhone maker of giving OpenAI’s ChatGPT an unfair edge over his own Grok AI in the App Store rankings — and he’s threatening to take the fight to court.

In a fiery post on X (formerly Twitter) late Monday night, the Tesla and SpaceX boss claimed Apple is making it “impossible” for any AI app other than ChatGPT to hit the top spot.

“Apple is behaving in a manner that makes it impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store, which is an unequivocal antitrust violation. xAI will take immediate legal action,” Musk wrote.

Grok vs ChatGPT — The App Store Battle

According to Musk, Grok AI boasts higher ratings and offers better features, yet ChatGPT keeps dominating downloads thanks to Apple’s preferential placement. He accused Apple of deliberately keeping Grok and X out of its “Must Have” section while ensuring ChatGPT appears on nearly every curated list.

“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? And why is ChatGPT literally in every list where you have editorial control?” Musk posted on Tuesday.

Sam Altman Fires Back

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wasn’t holding back either. Responding on X, Altman pointed to reports that Musk uses his own platform to promote his companies while harming competitors.

“I hope someone will get counter-discovery on this… I and many others would love to know what’s been happening. But OpenAI will just stay focused on making great products,” Altman said.

Apple’s Legal Headaches Aren’t New

This isn’t Apple’s first antitrust controversy. Back in April, a federal judge in California ruled the company had violated a court order aimed at opening up competition in app downloads and payment systems. Around the same time, the European Commission slapped Apple with a $570 million fine for breaching digital competition laws.

Old Friends, Now Rivals

Musk and Altman once co-founded OpenAI, but their relationship soured after the company shifted to a for-profit model. Since then, Musk has been openly critical of OpenAI’s practices, leading to repeated public clashes.

Apple, meanwhile, is deeply invested in OpenAI’s tech. ChatGPT is currently the most downloaded free iPhone app in the US, while Grok sits at No. 5.

Apple + OpenAI: The 2024 Deal

Apple and OpenAI struck a strategic partnership in June 2024, integrating ChatGPT into Apple devices to power “Apple Intelligence” features and boost Siri’s capabilities. Users can now generate custom emojis, create email summaries, and more — all backed by OpenAI’s language models.

Apple says this AI is baked into iPhones, iPads, and Macs with “privacy at the core,” a claim Musk has publicly doubted. He previously accused Apple of not knowing what happens to user data once shared with OpenAI, even joking that visitors to his companies would have to leave their Apple devices in a Faraday cage.

Pushing Ahead Despite Criticism

Apple doubled down at its 2025 Worldwide Developers Conference, announcing new visual intelligence features in iOS 26. These will allow iPhones to analyse on-screen text and images, with an option to instantly ask ChatGPT for more details or find similar items via Google.

For Apple, the partnership is a clear move to keep pace with Microsoft and Google in the AI race. For Musk, it’s a battle he says is about fair competition — but one that’s quickly turning into a personal tech war between two of Silicon Valley’s most influential names.

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