Apple denies bias claims as Elon Musk threatens legal action over App Store rankings

Apple has responded to Elon Musk’s allegations that the company is biased towards OpenAI’s ChatGPT over AI competitors in the App Store, calling the claims “unfounded.”

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Musk accused the App Store of discrimination in its rankings as ChatGPT topped the charts while Grok came in at number 6.

Musk wrote: “xAI will take immediate steps” as “Apple is behaving in a manner that makes it impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store, which is an unequivocal antitrust violation.”

Responding to the accusations, Apple wrote: “The App Store is designed to be fair and free of bias. We feature thousands of apps through charts, algorithmic recommendations, and curated lists selected by experts using objective criteria.”

The company further clarified: “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.”

Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, mocked the situation and wrote: "Heya AppStore, want to feature Fortnite?"

The rift between the two companies resembles a keyboard war as there is no substantial evidence to support the accusations.

However, the dispute represents the ongoing tensions between tech giants over AI dominance and platform fairness.

While Elon Musk frames this as anticompetitive, data suggests that the App Store’s ranking primarily depends upon user preference as the algorithm works on that.

If xAI takes legal action, this will likely escalate scrutiny of Apple policies related to App Store.