ChatGPT currently leads the “Top Free Apps” chart for iPhones in the US, but Elon Musk isn’t happy about it. On Monday, the billionaire announced that his artificial intelligence startup xAI plans to take legal action against Apple, accusing the tech giant of violating antitrust laws through its App Store ranking system.
“Apple is acting in a way that makes it impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to secure the #1 spot in the App Store this is a clear antitrust violation. xAI will move forward with immediate legal action,” Musk wrote on his social media platform X.
Musk did not present evidence for his claims, and Apple, OpenAI, and xAI have yet to respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
At present, ChatGPT dominates the App Store’s “Top Free Apps” section in the US, with xAI’s Grok sitting at fifth place and Google’s Gemini chatbot at 57th.
According to Sensor Tower data, ChatGPT also tops the Google Play Store rankings.
Apple has a partnership with OpenAI that integrates ChatGPT into iPhones, iPads and Macs.
“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 and Grok is #5 among all apps? Are you playing politics?” Musk said in an earlier post Monday.
Musk’s comments come as regulators and rivals intensify scrutiny of Apple’s control over its App Store.
In April, a US judge ruled that Apple violated a court order requiring it to allow greater competition in its App Store and referred the company to federal prosecutors for a criminal contempt investigation, in a case brought by ‘Fortnite’ maker Epic Games.
Apple was handed a 500 million euro ($587 million) fine by the EU antitrust enforcer in April, saying its technical and commercial restrictions prevented app developers from steering users to cheaper deals outside the App Store in breach of the Digital Markets Act.
