Elon Musk Threatens to Sue Apple Over App Store Rankings
August 13, 2025
by Jaymie Johhns
Elon Musk, the trailblazing leader of xAI and X, has launched a critical challenge against Apple, accusing the tech giant of rigging App Store rankings to favor OpenAI’s ChatGPT over his AI chatbot, Grok. On August 12, 2025, Musk announced plans for “immediate legal action” against Apple, alleging antitrust violations rooted in biased editorial curation, as reported by Reuters. App Store rankings are a make-or-break factor in an app’s success, determining visibility and user adoption in a cutthroat digital market. Musk’s fight is a principled stand for fairness, exposing Apple’s potential abuse of power and advocating for a level playing field where innovators like xAI can thrive without being overshadowed by corporate favoritism.
The power of App Store rankings cannot be overstated. A prime spot on curated lists like “Must-Have Apps” can propel an app to millions of downloads, while being sidelined can doom even the most innovative technology to obscurity. Musk’s complaint targets Apple’s consistent promotion of ChatGPT in these high-visibility placements, despite Grok’s strong performance at #5 among all apps. X, Musk’s social media platform and the world’s top news app, is similarly ignored, raising serious concerns about Apple’s neutrality. In a direct post on X, Musk questioned, “Why is ChatGPT literally in every list where you have editorial control?” He points to Apple’s 2024 partnership with OpenAI, which integrates ChatGPT into Siri and Apple Intelligence, as evidence of a conflict of interest that unfairly tilts rankings against competitors like xAI.
Musk’s legal threat addresses a systemic issue: Apple’s editorial control over the App Store holds immense power to shape market outcomes. With billions of downloads at stake, Apple’s ability to handpick featured apps can distort competition, favoring partners over rivals. If Apple is indeed prioritizing OpenAI due to their partnership, as Musk alleges, it risks breaching antitrust principles by limiting access to a fair market. Grok, designed to advance human scientific discovery, competes head-to-head with ChatGPT, yet its exclusion from curated lists hampers its reach, potentially depriving users of a powerful AI tool. Musk’s push for accountability mirrors his history of disrupting entrenched systems, from transforming electric vehicles with Tesla to revolutionizing space travel with SpaceX.
The response from OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, is predictably evasive, sidestepping the issue with the kind of slick maneuvering you’d expect from someone whose trustworthiness is dubious at best—I wouldn’t leave him alone with a goldfish. On X, Altman tossed out a flimsy accusation that Musk promotes his own ventures on X, a deflection that avoids the core question of Apple’s ranking practices. His vague hint at “counter-discovery” in a potential lawsuit feels like a calculated dodge, offering no substantive rebuttal to Musk’s claims. Altman’s track record—steering OpenAI toward profit-driven deals like its $10 billion Microsoft partnership—only deepens skepticism about his motives in this dispute.
App Store rankings are more than a matter of placement; they shape the future of technology by determining which innovations reach users. Musk’s challenge underscores a critical issue: when a tech giant like Apple controls visibility, it can stifle competition and limit consumer choice. Some X users point out that AI apps like DeepSeek and Perplexity have occasionally topped App Store charts, suggesting organic rankings are possible. However, Musk’s focus is on editorial curation, where Apple’s handpicked lists seem to favor OpenAI, likely due to their partnership. This raises valid concerns about whether Apple’s practices align with fair market standards, a question that demands scrutiny.
Musk’s history with OpenAI provides crucial context for his accusations. As a co-founder in 2015, he envisioned an organization dedicated to advancing human knowledge, but left in 2018 when it veered toward commercialization. With xAI, Musk created Grok to uphold that original mission, prioritizing truth-seeking over profit. Apple’s apparent favoritism toward ChatGPT undermines this effort, making Musk’s legal threat a defense of innovation itself. A lawsuit could force Apple to disclose its curation processes, revealing whether editorial decisions are merit-based or swayed by corporate alliances.
The implications of this dispute are far-reaching. App Store rankings determine the trajectory of emerging technologies like AI, influencing which tools gain traction and which are sidelined. If Apple’s practices favor established players, they risk stifling the diversity of solutions available to users. Musk’s willingness to confront Apple echoes his track record of challenging giants, ensuring that innovation thrives on merit, not favoritism. Legal experts note that an antitrust case would require evidence of intentional bias and harm to competition, a threshold Musk could meet by highlighting Grok’s performance and X’s ranking as the top news app. Apple may claim its curation reflects user preferences, but transparency is essential to resolve these concerns.
Musk’s stand is a call for fairness in the tech ecosystem. The App Store’s influence demands accountability, and his pursuit of legal action could set a precedent for how platforms manage competition. By championing Grok and xAI, Musk is fighting for a system where innovation is rewarded based on quality, not corporate connections. The outcome of this dispute could redefine how tech giants wield their power, ensuring that the next wave of apps succeeds on its merits, not through biased gatekeeping.
