Elon Musk has upped the ante in his ongoing battle with Apple and OpenAI, filing a lawsuit on Monday that accuses the two companies of colluding to entrench monopolies in the rapidly expanding AI chatbot market. The legal move comes just weeks after Musk publicly berated Apple for consistently promoting OpenAI’s ChatGPT while his own chatbot, Grok, has been conspicuously absent from the App Store’s “Must Have” list.

Filed on behalf of Musk’s companies X and xAI, the lawsuit goes well beyond complaints about App Store rankings. It alleges that Apple and OpenAI have entered into an exclusive agreement that not only gives ChatGPT unprecedented access to iPhone features but also locks out competitors from reaching Apple’s massive user base. Musk claims the arrangement violates antitrust and unfair competition laws, threatening to derail his long-promised vision of building an “everything app” on the foundation of Twitter, which he acquired in 2022.

Apple integrated ChatGPT into iOS as the default chatbot across Siri, Apple’s Writing Tools, and other features, the complaint charges, effectively giving OpenAI exclusive access to billions of user prompts. X argues that data is critical for training and improving chatbot models and, without access to it, rivals like Grok cannot scale. The filing estimates OpenAI already controls at least 80 percent of the chatbot market and that, with Apple’s integration, could cement its dominance for the foreseeable future.

“Generative AI chatbots would vigorously compete with one another in a fair market,” the lawsuit states. “Instead, defendants’ anticompetitive conduct has handed a substantial portion of the market to ChatGPT.”

X also contends that Apple is motivated by fears that a successful rival super app could one day make iPhones less essential, much like WeChat in China has become an all-in-one replacement for many standalone smartphone functions. The complaint even cites Apple executive Eddy Cue allegedly expressing concerns that advances in AI could “destroy Apple’s smartphone business.” Musk’s filing paints the deal as a desperate bid by Apple to preserve its iPhone monopoly, while helping OpenAI build an unbeatable lead in generative AI.

Exclusive Access and Growing Market Power

The complaint compares the deal to Apple’s longstanding search engine arrangement with Google, which U.S. regulators have argued entrenched Google’s monopoly. Musk alleges that Apple rejected repeated attempts by xAI to integrate Grok with iOS, and even refused requests to feature Grok in the App Store, including during the launch of its new “Imagine” feature. Beyond that, the filing claims Apple manipulated App Store rankings and delayed Grok updates to stifle competition.

At stake, Musk argues, is not just Grok’s ability to compete but the very future of AI-driven platforms. The lawsuit notes that Siri handled 1.5 billion user requests per day globally in 2024—a volume greater than the total prompts for all generative AI chatbots that year. If OpenAI alone receives those prompts, it effectively controls up to 55 percent of all potential chatbot interactions, X argues.

The filing suggests the consequences for consumers could be significant. Apple customers, it warns, may end up with fewer options and less capable chatbots, while paying monopoly prices for iPhones. Meanwhile, OpenAI could use its dominant position to raise subscription prices, with plans to double its “plus” subscription over the next four years. “That plan would be unfeasible unless OpenAI has power over marketwide prices,” the lawsuit alleges.

Musk also highlights the chilling effect on investment. If Apple continues to “press its thumb firmly on the scale” for ChatGPT, investors may see little value in backing rivals, depriving them of resources needed to grow. This, X argues, could lead to talent loss as Big Tech firms scoop up developers from underfunded startups.

The lawsuit further questions the financial logic of the Apple-OpenAI deal. According to X, OpenAI provided ChatGPT to Apple for free, effectively paying for the partnership itself, while Apple expects no near-term profit. The filing suggests both companies view the exclusivity as more valuable than direct revenue, as it broadly blocks rivals and entrenches market control.

“By making the deal exclusive, Apple sacrificed the profits it would have earned by integrating multiple chatbots,” the complaint argues. “The true motive was Apple and OpenAI’s shared goal of blocking competition.”

For Musk, the stakes could not be higher. He warns that without relief, Grok may never be able to fairly compete, leaving X less attractive to users and investors. “Because Grok’s functionality is a key feature of the X app, the X app is more attractive the better Grok performs,” the filing states. “Defendants’ conduct makes Grok less able to compete with ChatGPT, leading to fewer customers, less revenue, and ultimately a depressed enterprise value for X.”

Musk’s companies are seeking billions of dollars in damages as well as a permanent injunction blocking Apple’s exclusive integration of ChatGPT. OpenAI, responding to Ars Technica, dismissed the filing as part of Musk’s “ongoing pattern of harassment.” Apple declined to comment.

Whether a court agrees with Musk that Apple and OpenAI have illegally entrenched monopolies could determine not only Grok’s fate, but also how competitive the next chapter of AI innovation will be.