Tech giant Apple has denied any foul play, insisting its platform is “fair and free of bias" after Tesla and SpaceX owner Elon Musk accused the iPhone maker of favouritism in App Store rankings.
Musk had claimed that that OpenAI’s ChatGPT ranks first because of Apple’s favouritism, while his apps, X and xAI’s Grok, are being sidelined.
Apple discounted claims its App Store algorithms or curated lists prefer ChatGPT to Musk's apps. "The App Store is meant to be fair and without bias," the company stated, going on to say that recommendations are determined through charts, algorithms, and editorial curation by expert editors based on objective criteria, as reported by several media outlets.
Our aim is to provide users with safe discovery and developers with meaningful opportunities, working with many to maximize app exposure in fast-growing categories," the statement from the company went on.
Musk on X condemned Apple for supposedly making it "impossible for any AI company other than OpenAI to get #1.
He complained that while X topped the News chart and Grok was majorly updated with the inclusion of making Grok 4 available for free to all users, his chatbot was only fifth overall and second in Productivity.
Meanwhile, ChatGPT has held a firm grip on the top spot on the App Store. Musk had alleged that Apple’s support for ChatGPT is not driven by organic popularity. Apple has highlighted ChatGPT in App Store editorial content and incorporated OpenAI’s technology into its Apple Intelligence rollout, integrating it directly into Siri and writing tools.
Musk threatened “immediate legal action” over the matter, although no lawsuit has yet been filed.
Apple is in a difficult position as it battles a high-profile US Department of Justice antitrust case. Apple is appealing a recent decision in its ongoing court battle with Epic Games, requiring it to modify some App Store guidelines.
OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, last week issued huge bonus payments to around 1,000 employees just ahead of the launch of GPT-5, equivalent to roughly one-third of its full-time staff.
GPT‑5 is offered to everyone, with Plus members having more usage and Pro members having GPT‑5 Pro, an extension of reasoning for even more thorough and accurate responses.
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