Elon Musk Accuses Apple of Favoring ChatGPT Over Grok in App Store Rankings

Elon Musk has renewed his public criticism of Apple, this time alleging the company is giving OpenAI’s ChatGPT app an unfair edge over his own Grok AI app. In a post on X, Musk called the situation an “unequivocal antitrust violation,” escalating a brewing rivalry between the two AI platforms.

Grok’s Climb in the Charts

Since the launch of Grok 4, the latest large language model from Musk’s AI venture xAI, the app has surged in App Store visibility. The boost comes alongside new capabilities, including Grok Imagine for generating images and videos, plus tools for building custom “companion” chatbots.

Analytics from App Figures show Grok’s ranking jumping from around 60th overall to 29th last week. That momentum grew after xAI made Grok 4 free to all users globally, pushing the app to fifth overall and second in the Productivity category.

Apple’s Ties to ChatGPT

Despite Grok’s rapid rise, it has yet to overtake OpenAI’s ChatGPT app, which has dominated the top spot for much of the past year. Part of ChatGPT’s staying power appears linked to Apple’s own editorial placement in the App Store, as well as its deeper integration into Apple’s upcoming “Apple Intelligence” features.

These integrations include direct Siri support and system-wide Writing Tools on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, giving ChatGPT a native presence across Apple devices.

Musk Pushes Back

Musk’s latest complaint centers on Apple’s “Must Have” section, which features ChatGPT but not X (which he describes as the “#1 news app in the world”) or Grok, despite Grok’s position near the top of its category. His criticism came hours before he hinted at a potential lawsuit against Apple over alleged favoritism toward OpenAI.

The dispute also carries a personal dimension. Musk co-founded OpenAI in its early years but departed before it shifted to a for-profit model. He is currently suing OpenAI over that transition while competing directly with it through xAI. This backdrop makes his accusations against Apple another flashpoint in his ongoing battle with his former company.

Will It End Up in Court?

Musk has made legal threats before that never materialized, so it’s unclear whether xAI will actually take Apple to court. For now, his comments have reignited discussion about App Store fairness and whether Apple’s alignment with OpenAI could influence the balance of AI competition on its platforms.

Do you think Apple is giving OpenAI special treatment, or is this just the reality of platform partnerships? Let us know in the comments.