Musk and Altman clash over accusations that Apple gives preferential treatment to OpenAI
In the dynamic world of artificial intelligence, a bitter feud between tech mogul Elon Musk and OpenAI, the non-profit AI research company, continues to unfold. The latest round of this dispute revolves around allegations of favouritism by Apple towards OpenAI's ChatGPT app on its App Store.
According to legal documents, Musk, who founded his own genAI startup, xAI, in 2023, is alleged to have become hostile towards OpenAI after abandoning the company before its breakthrough achievements with ChatGPT. Musk has accused Apple of making it "impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store," citing ChatGPT’s top ranking and xAI's AI assistant, Grok's lower placement.
However, independent AI apps like DeepSeek and Perplexity have reached #1 in various App Store charts this year, contradicting Musk's claim. Apple's official response emphasizes featuring thousands of apps fairly and attributes rankings to charts, algorithmic recommendations, and curated lists chosen by experts using objective metrics, rejecting the notion of favouritism.
Regulatory scrutiny on Apple’s App Store conduct exists from other legal cases, but none specifically validate Musk’s allegations about ChatGPT favouritism or antitrust violation related to AI apps. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, in response to Musk's claims, has criticized Musk's behaviours in the competitive AI space, indirectly undermining Musk's position.
The feud between Musk and OpenAI dates back to OpenAI's accusation that Musk made it his project to "take down OpenAI, and to build a direct competitor" with xAI. This accusation was followed by Musk's threat of legal action and a request for OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, to sign a sworn legal statement.
Recent developments include the rollout of ChatGPT-5 to nearly 700 million weekly users, the release of new versions of ChatGPT and Grok by OpenAI and xAI respectively, and the listing of ChatGPT as the top free iPhone app on the App Store. The tech industry giants Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and xAI have been investing billions in artificial intelligence since the launch of the first version of ChatGPT in late 2022.
In a heated exchange, Musk called Altman a "liar." OpenAI filed counterclaims against Musk in April, accusing him of waging a "relentless campaign" to damage the organization after its success. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, called Musk's accusation "remarkable."
The Chinese startup DeepSeek made waves in the AI sector early this year with a model that delivers high performance using less costly chips. As the AI race continues, it remains to be seen how this feud will unfold.
Despite the ongoing accusations, it is important to note that Musk's allegations are "assertions without firm public evidence," as stated by OpenAI. No regulatory or legal body has substantiated his claim as of now.
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