Elon Musk, founder of xAI, has just filed a lawsuit against Apple and OpenAI. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, on August 25, 2025, accuses Apple of anticompetitive conduct over its exclusive partnership with OpenAI involving the ChatGPT tool. According to xAI, this agreement creates an illegal "moat" that prevents competitors such as xAI's Grok chatbot from reaching millions of iPhone users.

Details of the Lawsuit

The lawsuit claims that integrating ChatGPT into Apple's iOS operating system "steers" users toward OpenAI's tool, discouraging them from downloading competing apps such as Grok and X. xAI accuses Apple of manipulating App Store rankings and excluding its apps from "must-have" sections while prominently promoting ChatGPT. According to the lawsuit, this practice gives OpenAI unfair access to hundreds of millions of iPhone users and creates an illegal monopoly in artificial intelligence (AI).

xAI, together with Musk's social network X, argues that the agreement between Apple and OpenAI allows OpenAI's tools—specifically ChatGPT and Apple Intelligence—to serve as the exclusive or default AI assistant on iPhones and other Apple devices. According to the lawsuit, this prevents rivals such as Grok from gaining market share or visibility in the App Store. The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction against these practices and billions of dollars in damages—specifically more than USD 1 billion (CZK 22.5 billion).

Responses from the Parties

OpenAI described the lawsuit as part of Elon Musk's "ongoing pattern of harassment." Apple, meanwhile, claims that its App Store is designed to be "fair and free of bias." The dispute follows Musk's earlier outburst on the X platform against Apple and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, which took place earlier this month. Musk's anger was not an empty threat, and this is not the first time Apple has faced accusations of operating a "walled garden," a term for a closed ecosystem that restricts competition.

The lawsuit emphasizes that the partnership between Apple and OpenAI limits consumer choice and stifles innovation by preventing alternative AI products from being easily accessed or promoted on Apple devices. xAI claims that this exclusive operating-system-level integration gives OpenAI an unfair advantage and closes the market to other AI providers.

Significance for the AI Market

This case could establish the first precedent for competition in the AI market just as artificial intelligence enters the mainstream. The lawsuit is part of Musk's dispute with OpenAI, which he previously sued for breach of contract and fraud related to OpenAI's transition from a nonprofit to a for-profit organization. According to available information, the lawsuit accuses Apple and OpenAI of creating an illegal scheme to dominate the artificial intelligence industry and suppress competition from other companies such as xAI.