Lawsuit accuses companies of ‘conspiracy to monopolize markets for smartphones and generative AI chatbots’
Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI is suing OpenAI and Apple over allegations that they are engaging in anticompetitive conduct. The lawsuit, filed in a Texas court on Monday, accuses the companies of “a conspiracy to monopolize the markets for smartphones and generative AI chatbots”.
Musk had earlier this month threatened to sue Apple and OpenAI, which makes ChatGPT, after claiming that Apple was “making it impossible” for any other AI companies to reach the top spot on its app store. Musk’s xAI makes the Grok chatbot, which has struggled to become as prominent as ChatGPT.
Musk’s lawsuit challenges a key partnership between Apple and OpenAI that was announced last year, in which the device maker integrated OpenAI’s artificial intelligence capabilities into its operating systems. In claiming that their agreement “locked up markets,” Musk’s case is seeking to undo one of Apple’s most significant forays into AI and a marquee deal for OpenAI.
“Defendants entered an unlawful agreement and conspiracy to leverage Apple’s monopoly power in the US smartphone market to maintain OpenAI’s monopoly power in generative AI chatbots,” the complaint states. It is also seeking to “recover billions in damages”.
