Elon Musk’s X, SpaceXAI Resolve Apple Antitrust Claims

Elon Musk's X Corp and SpaceXAI have reached an agreement to settle their antitrust claims against Apple, bringing an end to one aspect of the lawsuit alleging collusion between Apple and OpenAI to monopolize smartphone and generative AI chatbot markets. The firms asked a federal court in Texas on Monday to dismiss their claims against Apple with prejudice, preventing them from being refiled.

Apple did not contest the motion. The legal papers, while not disclosing the settlement details, stated that "Plaintiffs have resolved their claims in this Action against Defendant Apple Inc." U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman granted the motion on Monday, but Apple's antitrust claims against OpenAI remained unresolved. The lawsuit, filed last year, accused Apple of violating antitrust laws by integrating ChatGPT into iPhone features through Apple Intelligence.

Musk's companies argued this partnership benefited OpenAI in the generative AI sector while limiting competition from rival chatbots. The resolution has sparked questions about its potential impact on the ongoing case. OpenAI claimed it was not part of the Apple-Musk talks and does not know the agreement's terms. They requested the agreement and a 14-day extension to file a summary judgment motion, arguing the terms could impact their defenses.

OpenAI maintains that its agreement with Apple doesn't hinder business discussions with Musk's firms or competitors. X and SpaceXAI agreed to the extension but haven't produced the Apple agreement as of Monday's filing, according to OpenAI. The ChatGPT provider threatened legal action if it can't obtain the document promptly. Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015 and left the board in 2018, becoming a prominent critic of the company and founding xAI, a competitor of Grok chatbot. Neither Apple nor OpenAI commented on the resolution.