He now threatens an antitrust lawsuit, claiming that ChatGPT is on «literally every list where you [they] have editorial control,» like their «Must-Have Apps» section.
Hey @Apple App Store, why do you refuse to put either 𝕏 or Grok in your “Must Have” section when 𝕏 is the #1 news app in the world and Grok is #5 among all apps?
Are you playing politics? What gives? Inquiring minds want to know. https://t.co/3wenLZGtwG
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 11, 2025
«Clear» antitrust violation
Not two hours later, he then went on to post that this is an «an unequivocal antitrust violation,» and that «xAI will take immediate legal action.»
Apple is behaving in a manner that makes it impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store, which is an unequivocal antitrust violation.
xAI will take immediate legal action.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2025
Sued his own advertisers
Musk has a long history as an angry litigant, claiming even his own advertisers on x.com were blocking him not for business reasons, but as an antitrust violation, and some acquiesced.
He has long been embroiled in a legal brawl against OpenAI, claiming the company is violating its own charter, where OpenAI has countersued claiming «bad faith tactics» solely meant to slow down a competitor.
OpenAI responds
OpenAI has responded to the recent threat by cooing about the possibility of counter discovery, claiming that on the contrary, Musk is supposedly manipulating x.com to benefit his own companies and harm those he doesn’t like;
This is a remarkable claim given what I have heard alleged that Elon does to manipulate X to benefit himself and his own companies and harm his competitors and people he doesn't like. https://t.co/HlgzO4c2iC
— Sam Altman (@sama) August 12, 2025
«We would love to know what’s been happening,» says Sam Altman, adding that meanwhile, «OpenAI will just stay focused on making great products.»
UPDATE: Apple has responded in a statement to Blooomberg, that the App Store is «designed to be fair and free of bias,» as reported by Engadet. They add that it presents «thousands of apps through charts, algorithmic recommendations and curated lists selected by experts using objective criteria.»
App Store no stranger to lawsuits
The App Store has long been claimed as a monopoly and there are plenty of lawsuits filed against it, notably Epic Games v. Apple over payment alternatives.
Apple is also currently being sued by The Department of Justice for maintaining a monopoly in the phones market, with the App Store featuring prominently.
Apple has declined to comment on the issue to various news publications with stories on this.