Elon Musk has filed a lawsuit against Apple and OpenAI in federal court, accusing both companies of conspiring to eliminate competition in generative AI.
Details of the Lawsuit
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas by Musk's AI startup xAI, which owns the social media platform X. Musk claims Apple and OpenAI are using their influence to collude and eliminate any chance of competition in smartphones and generative AI. The suit alleges that Apple is intentionally favoring OpenAI by integrating ChatGPT into iPhones, iPads, and Macs, while burying other AI tools like xAI’s Grok in App Store rankings.
Responses from Apple and OpenAI
OpenAI has responded, calling Musk's lawsuit 'consistent with Mr. Musk’s ongoing pattern of harassment.' OpenAI CEO Sam Altman mentioned that Musk’s claims contradict his actions on X. Apple asserts that its App Store is designed to be fair and unbiased, while the lawsuit claims otherwise.
History of Musk and OpenAI's Relationship
The relationship between Musk and Altman is complicated. Musk left OpenAI in 2018 after disagreements about the company's direction. Since then, OpenAI has transformed into a commercial entity, which Musk disapproved of. Last year, he sued OpenAI, alleging they were not adhering to their original mission of developing AI 'for the benefit of humanity.'
The lawsuit against Apple and OpenAI highlights the tension in the tech industry, where the fight for competitiveness is increasingly fierce.
