A Texas federal judge refused Thursday to toss an antitrust lawsuit accusing Apple and OpenAI of conspiring to box out rivals through their blockbuster deal placing ChatGPT directly inside Apple’s operating systems — a partnership Elon Musk’s xAI brands as a digital chokehold on competition.
U.S. District Judge Mark T. Pittman denied both companies’ motions to dismiss, opting instead to keep the legal brawl alive while hinting that a jury may never see it. In a brief but pointed order, he said the dispute appears “better suited” for summary judgment, signaling that the case may be resolved through legal arguments rather than courtroom theatrics.
“This is not a judgment on the merits,” the judge cautioned, adding that he reached the decision only after “a thorough review” of the filings.
A ‘Tale of Two Monopolists’
Musk’s Companies Claim Apple Locked Out Rivals
Musk-owned X Corp. and xAI sued in August, characterizing the Apple-OpenAI partnership as a “tale of two monopolists” joining forces to freeze emerging generative AI competitors out of the market.
Announced in June 2024, the integration folds ChatGPT into iPhone, iPad, and MacOS features, granting the chatbot what xAI calls a “prime gatekeeper position” on hundreds of millions of Apple devices.
The complaint argues users effectively cannot choose alternative chatbots such as xAI’s Grok, leaving ChatGPT as the only generative AI system harvesting billions of prompts from Apple’s customer base.
“This makes it nearly impossible for competitors to scale and innovate,” the lawsuit claims, accusing both companies of violating the Sherman Act and the Texas Free Enterprise and Antitrust Act.
The plaintiffs want the court to block Apple and OpenAI from maintaining what they say is an exclusive arrangement.
