- Elon Musk's companies have withdrawn their antitrust claims against Apple.
- xAI and SpaceXAI will continue to pursue the case against OpenAI.
- The complaint alleged Apple gave OpenAI an unfair advantage.
- Musk has said he is open to having Grok power a revamped Siri.
Elon Musk's social platform and artificial intelligence venture SpaceXAI have dropped Apple from an antitrust lawsuit they filed last year against the iPhone maker and OpenAI, according to reports. In court filings in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, lawyers for xAI and SpaceXAI moved to withdraw the claims against Apple, news that was first reported by Reuters. The filings did not explain why the two companies chose to drop the claims against Apple, nor whether any settlement had been reached.
Claims against Apple dropped
xAI and SpaceXAI said they will continue to pursue the case against OpenAI, which remains a defendant. That resolves one company's dispute while keeping the core allegations against the other party intact, with no public explanation of what changed in the meantime. The lawsuit was filed in August 2025, when xAI and x sued, alleging that Apple made ChatGPT the sole generative AI chatbot on iOS, giving OpenAI an unfair structural advantage.
The complaint claimed that, at the time, ChatGPT controlled roughly 80% of the chatbot market, while Grok held just a few percentage points. The plaintiffs sought billions of dollars in damages and asked the court to dismantle the arrangement. The filing came shortly after Musk publicly complained that Grok and x were absent from Apple's "must-have apps" featured section, despite Grok ranking second in the productivity category and x ranking first in the news category. He accused Apple of "playing politics" and warned of imminent legal action, then followed through within days.
Case moves into discovery
Apple and OpenAI had attempted to have the case dismissed, but a federal judge rejected the requests in November, ruling that the dispute was better suited to summary judgment than an early dismissal. That decision moved the case into discovery, which may be what prompted this week's filings. Musk noted that his feelings toward Apple had shifted, saying he was open to letting Grok power a revamped Siri, after a user suggested Apple replace its aging assistant with xAI's model.xAI, the AI business Musk folded into X Corp last year, has since merged with SpaceX to create the SpaceXAI brand. The structure now brings x, Grok and SpaceX's rocket and satellite operations under the same roof, as Musk seeks to push his AI ambitions into a broader arena. For now, OpenAI remains the sole remaining defendant, and Musk's companies have not indicated whether the original allegations have been altered in any way.
Apple and OpenAI also did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the filings.
Musk's shifting stance toward Apple
Elon Musk's companies dropping their lawsuit against Apple suggests his attitude toward the iPhone maker may be shifting. In the past, Musk's frustration with Apple stemmed largely from allegations about ChatGPT's market advantage, which he argued was unfair. With the case now in discovery, Musk has even expressed willingness to let Grok power Siri, which could signal that he is looking to establish a more cooperative relationship with Apple. The shift not only affects the legal relationship between the two companies but could also reshape the competitive landscape going forward.