OpenAI CEO Sam Altman rejected Elon Musk’s claim that Apple limits competition in the App Store.

Musk, who leads X and xAI, said Apple’s policies make it “impossible” for any AI firm other than OpenAI to top the App Store, calling it an “antitrust violation.”

Altman replied on X, suggesting Musk manipulates the X platform to benefit his own businesses and hinder competitors, citing reports that Musk boosted his own posts’ visibility.

Musk said xAI plans to take legal action against Apple over alleged antitrust violations, but did not provide evidence.

Apple, which has partnered with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into its devices, has recently faced criticism from Musk regarding App Store rankings.

Currently, ChatGPT is the top free iPhone app in the US App Store, with Grok at fifth and Google’s Gemini chatbot at 57th.

🔗 Source: The Economic Times

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ ChatGPT’s app store dominance reflects genuine user adoption, not manipulation

Musk’s antitrust allegations against Apple lack supporting evidence when viewed against actual AI app usage data.

ChatGPT leads with 546.15 million monthly active users globally and captured 31 million downloads in the U.S. during 2024, making it the most downloaded AI app in America1.

These usage metrics suggest that ChatGPT’s #1 App Store ranking stems from genuine consumer preference rather than anti-competitive App Store manipulation.

The substantial gap between ChatGPT and competitors like Grok (ranked #5) appears consistent with actual market adoption patterns, where ChatGPT has maintained significant user engagement advantages since its mainstream breakthrough.

Without concrete evidence of App Store algorithm manipulation, Musk’s claims appear to conflate competitive disadvantage with anti-competitive behavior.

2️⃣ AI app market growth intensifies competition for mobile visibility

The dispute emerges amid explosive growth in mobile AI applications, creating fierce competition for top App Store positions.