Apple denies undermining Elon Musk's xAI by teaming up with OpenAI

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By Robert Burnson

 

Apple Inc. says it did nothing wrong in choosing to partner with OpenAI — rather than Elon Musk’s xAI — when it added generative artificial intelligence to its iPhone operating system.

 

Apple’s lawyers said in a court filing Tuesday that even if the company teamed up with OpenAI first, it is “widely known that Apple intends to partner with other generative AI chatbots” in the future.

 

Musk’s AI startup and his social media platform X Corp. sued Apple and OpenAI in August, seeking billions of dollars in damages over their claim that the iPhone maker’s favouritism toward OpenAI, run by Musk rival Sam Altman, inhibited innovation in the AI industry and deprived consumers of choices.

 

Apple is asking a judge in Fort Worth, Texas, to dismiss the case. It argued in the filing that the antitrust injury alleged by Musk’s companies is based on “speculation on top of speculation.”

 

X Corp. claims that Apple cannot partner with OpenAI “without simultaneously partnering with every other generative AI chatbot—regardless of quality, privacy or safety considerations, technical feasibility, stage of development, or commercial terms,” Apple’s lawyers wrote. “Of course, the antitrust laws do not require that.”

 

A media representative for xAI didn’t immediately respond outside regular business hours to a request for comment. 

 

The case is X Corp. v. Apple Inc., 25-cv-00914, US District Court, Northern District of Texas (Fort Worth).