OpenAI has charged that Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI, intentionally erased evidence in a lengthy antitrust suit, setting off a legal battle that has now merged antitrust allegations with misconduct claims.
In a new court filing, the creator of ChatGPT also claims that pivotal internal communications at xAI were deliberately erased just as they were getting closer to filing suit, putting OpenAI and other defendants at a disadvantage.
In documents it filed on Monday in a U.S. federal court, OpenAI accused xAI of what it described as the “systematic and intentional destruction” of evidence. According to OpenAI, xAI directed its employees to use messaging tools that auto-delete messages after a set timeframe, even though the company was aware it was planning to file a lawsuit and thus had a duty to maintain records.
OpenAI said those disappearing messages affected “every aspect of xAI’s business,” including talking points central to the antitrust case now before the court.
Musk’s xAI challenges Apple and OpenAI over ChatGPT deal
Musk’s social media platform X and xAI filed an antitrust lawsuit against OpenAI and Apple Inc. in August. Musk’s companies argue that by embedding ChatGPT directly into Apple’s devices, especially the iPhone, Apple has effectively given OpenAI a powerful advantage over competing chatbots.
These include xAI’s own product, Grok, which is closely tied to the X platform. The suit seeks billions of dollars in damages and argues that smaller or newer AI companies are being locked out of crucial markets.
OpenAI and Apple have denied the claims, arguing that integrating ChatGPT does not prevent other AI tools from competing or being accessed by users. Yet despite these denials, in November a judge in Fort Worth, Texas, decided the case could proceed, allowing the plaintiffs to pursue their arguments in court.
In its latest filing, OpenAI also traced the lawsuit to a long-standing personal and professional feud between Elon Musk and OpenAI’s chief executive, Sam Altman. Musk and Altman co-founded OpenAI, a nonprofit research lab founded in 2015. Musk left OpenAI’s board in 2018, and the relationship between the two has soured since then, with Musk frequently criticizing the company’s direction and governance.
The filing states that OpenAI had asked xAI for documents to support its argument that Apple’s partnership with OpenAI prevented xAI from entering the generative AI market. But OpenAI says it got nothing of substance.
On related development, Anthropic, the developer behind Claude AI, is using its first Super Bowl ad buy to take a direct shot at OpenAI. In a series of commercials posted online ahead of the big game, the company mocked OpenAI’s shift into advertising embedded inside ChatGPT, focusing on how the ads could change the experience of using conversational AI.
OpenAI launches standalone Codex app for Apple computers
Despite the ongoing issues, OpenAI continues product development, announcing the launch of its Codex app for Apple computers on the same day as the court filing.
The new app has a simple interface and is designed to serve as a “command center” that makes it easy for software developers to manage multiple AI agents at once, OpenAI said. An AI agent is a tool that can independently complete tasks, like writing code, on behalf of a user.
Previously, Codex was primarily accessible to users via web-based tools or tools in other software. This standalone app is designed to provide developers and technical users with a closer, more focused experience, allowing them to focus on code on macOS devices.
OpenAI notes that the app lets users interact directly with Codex on their desktops, making it easier to create code snippets, test applications, and explore various coding concepts without switching between tools.
But with the app’s launch on Monday, OpenAI said it is also making Codex available to its free users and to its low-cost Go subscription tier for a limited time. That means all ChatGPT users can use Codex across all its available interfaces, including the Apple app.
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