A fiery debate between tech titans Elon Musk and Sam Altman has erupted, with Musk now taking aim at Apple with a legal threat. Musk, through his AI company xAI, accuses Apple of an “unequivocal antitrust violation” by allegedly manipulating its App Store rankings to favor OpenAI. He points to OpenAI’s ChatGPT’s top ranking, arguing it’s impossible for other AI apps to compete fairly. This assertion was quickly met with a sharp retort from Altman, who called the claim “remarkable” given reports of Musk manipulating his own platform, X.
The public quarrel on X is the latest chapter in a bitter rivalry that dates back to OpenAI’s founding. Musk, a co-founder, left the company in 2018 after his proposal to take it over was rejected. He has since sued OpenAI twice, accusing the company of straying from its original mission. Altman has consistently framed Musk’s actions as the bitterness of a jilted partner. This new conflict over Apple adds fuel to their long-simmering animosity.
Musk’s claim of an unfair ranking system is already being challenged by independent verification. Community notes on X highlight that other AI apps, including DeepSeek and Perplexity, have reached the number one position on the App Store in various regions this year, post-OpenAI’s partnership with Apple. This evidence undermines Musk’s assertion that the top spot is exclusively reserved for OpenAI. Even Grok, xAI’s own AI, sided with Altman when asked about the dispute, stating that Altman was “right.”
This confrontation with Apple places further pressure on the tech giant, which is already under fire from regulators worldwide. The EU has fined Apple for anti-steering policies, and the US Department of Justice has filed a massive antitrust lawsuit, accusing the company of maintaining an illegal smartphone monopoly. Musk’s threat, whether or not it leads to a lawsuit, adds to the growing chorus of criticism against Apple’s App Store dominance.
