MNN (Web-Desk); Billionaire Elon Musk declared on Monday that his AI startup, xAI, plans to take legal action against Apple, accusing the tech giant of violating antitrust laws by manipulating App Store rankings.
Musk claims Appleâs policies make it impossible for any AI company other than OpenAI to reach the number one spot in the App Store, calling this an âunequivocal antitrust violation.â He announced this on his social media platform X, though he did not provide evidence to support the accusation.
Currently, OpenAIâs ChatGPT holds the top position in the App Storeâs âTop Free Appsâ chart for iPhones in the US.
xAIâs Grok ranks fifth, while Googleâs Gemini chatbot is at 57th. ChatGPT also leads in rankings on the Google Play Store, according to Sensor Tower data. Apple has a partnership with OpenAI that integrates ChatGPT into its devices, including iPhones, iPads, and Macs.
Earlier on Monday, Musk questioned Appleâs decision not to feature either X or Grok in the App Storeâs âMust Haveâ section, despite X being the worldâs number one news app and Grok ranking fifth among all apps. He suggested that Apple might be âplaying politics.â
Muskâs criticism comes amid increasing regulatory and competitive scrutiny of Appleâs control over its App Store.
In April, a US judge found Apple in violation of a court order to allow more competition in the App Store and referred the company to federal prosecutors for criminal contempt in a case brought by Fortnite maker Epic Games.
Additionally, Apple was fined âŹ500 million ($587 million) by the European Union for restricting app developers from directing users to cheaper options outside the App Store, violating the Digital Markets Act.
