Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk has announced plans to sue Apple, accusing the tech giant of unfairly excluding his social media platform X and AI chatbot Grok from the App Store’s top recommended apps.

Musk, who owns SpaceX, Tesla, and X, claims Apple’s actions constitute an “unequivocal antitrust violation” by favoring OpenAI’s ChatGPT over other AI applications.

In a series of posts on X late Monday, Musk questioned Apple’s App Store policies, writing, “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.” He further alleged that Apple’s practices make it “impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store,” vowing that his AI company, xAI, which owns Grok, would take “immediate legal action.” Musk provided no specific details on the planned lawsuit.

Apple responded with a statement defending the fairness of its App Store. “The App Store is designed to be fair and free of bias,” the company said. “We feature thousands of apps through charts, algorithmic recommendations, and curated lists selected by experts using objective criteria. Our goal is to offer safe discovery for users and valuable opportunities for developers, collaborating with many to increase app visibility in rapidly evolving categories.”

Musk’s accusations come amid growing scrutiny of Apple’s App Store practices. In April, the European Union fined Apple €500 million ($587 million) for violating competition rules by restricting app developers from directing users to cheaper subscription options outside the App Store. Last year, the EU imposed a nearly $2 billion fine on Apple for unfairly favoring its own music streaming service, preventing competitors like Spotify from informing users about alternative payment methods. Additionally, a U.S. federal judge recently ruled that Apple violated a court injunction in an antitrust case brought by Fortnite maker Epic Games, further fueling allegations of anti-competitive behavior.

Critics of Musk’s claims have pointed out inconsistencies, noting that other AI apps, such as DeepSeek, reached the top spot in the App Store in January 2025, and Perplexity hit #1 in India’s App Store in July, both after Apple’s partnership with OpenAI was announced in June 2024. As of Tuesday, the App Store’s top free apps included TikTok, Tinder, Duolingo, YouTube, and Bumble, with ChatGPT ranked seventh and Grok at sixth.

Musk’s contentious relationship with OpenAI, which he co-founded in 2015 before leaving in 2018, adds context to his accusations. He has previously sued OpenAI, alleging it abandoned its nonprofit mission in favor of a for-profit model tied to Microsoft.

As of now, no formal lawsuit has been filed, and the dispute highlights ongoing tensions between tech giants over market dominance and fair competition in the rapidly evolving AI and app ecosystems. (ILKHA)