OpenAI preparing legal action against Apple

OpenAI is weighing possible legal action against Apple over the companies’ 2024 partnership that brought ChatGPT into Siri and Apple’s Writing Tools, according to Bloomberg News and a follow-up report from TechCrunch. Bloomberg reported on May 14 that the relationship has frayed after OpenAI concluded the integration did not deliver the prominence inside Siri or the paid-user conversions it expected. Apple and OpenAI publicly announced the partnership at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference on June 10, 2024, when both companies said Siri could hand some requests to ChatGPT with user permission. (bloomberg.com) As of May 15, neither company had publicly announced a lawsuit. ### What exactly did Apple and OpenAI agree to in 2024? Apple on June 10, 2024 said ChatGPT would be integrated into iOS, iPadOS and macOS, including within Siri and systemwide Writing Tools. The company said Siri could present answers from ChatGPT directly after asking the user for permission to send a query, photo or document. Apple also said users would be able to access ChatGPT without creating an account, while subscribers could connect paid accounts to unlock additional features. (bloomberg.com) OpenAI said the same day that Apple users would be able to access ChatGPT’s image and document understanding inside Apple software rather than switching apps. OpenAI’s announcement also emphasized privacy terms around the integration, saying requests made through Apple’s system would not be stored by OpenAI and IP addresses would be obscured. ### What is OpenAI said to be unhappy about? Bloomberg reported on May 14 that OpenAI had expected the Apple tie-up to drive more visibility inside Siri and convert more iPhone users into paid ChatGPT subscribers. (apple.com) TechCrunch, citing Bloomberg, wrote that the integration failed to deliver the subscriber gains and product prominence OpenAI had anticipated. Neither report, in the excerpts publicly available, disclosed a target number for conversions or identified a filed legal claim. (openai.com) May 14 is also the date Bloomberg described OpenAI as preparing a “possible legal fight,” language that indicates exploration rather than a filed case. TechCrunch separately said OpenAI was “actively exploring legal action,” again attributing the account to Bloomberg’s reporting and unnamed people familiar with the matter. ### How visible was ChatGPT inside Apple’s software? Apple’s own product language presented ChatGPT as one component inside a broader Apple Intelligence system, not as the default identity of Siri. (bloomberg.com) The June 2024 Apple release said Siri can “tap into” ChatGPT when helpful, and the December 11, 2024 update described “seamless support for ChatGPT” alongside Image Playground, Genmoji and Writing Tools enhancements. The OpenAI help page currently describes the feature in similar terms. (bloomberg.com) The page says users can choose to allow an Apple device to work with ChatGPT through Apple Intelligence and Siri, which reinforces that the integration depends on Apple’s interface and permission flow. ### Why would a dispute turn legal instead of commercial? Bloomberg’s report points to expectations around distribution and subscriber conversion, which are typically governed by commercial terms, product placement commitments or performance obligations in partnership agreements. (apple.com) Neither Apple nor OpenAI has published the contract, so the legal theory—if one is pursued—has not been made public. TechCrunch tied the reported dispute to a broader pattern of friction between platform owners and outside AI providers, but the publication did not identify a complaint filed by OpenAI against Apple as of May 14. (help.openai.com) What is on the record is narrower: Bloomberg reported strain, and Apple’s and OpenAI’s public statements still describe the integration as part of Apple Intelligence. ### What should readers watch next? A court filing is the clearest next marker. (bloomberg.com) If OpenAI proceeds, the first public evidence would likely be a complaint in a U.S. court naming Apple and setting out the contract terms or alleged breaches behind the dispute. Apple’s next formal venue for discussing Siri and Apple Intelligence is likely to be a company event, product release or court response rather than a broad public statement. Until then, the most concrete public documents remain Bloomberg’s May 14 report, TechCrunch’s May 14 follow-up, Apple’s June 10 and December 11, 2024 releases, and OpenAI’s June 2024 partnership announcement. (techcrunch.com) (bloomberg.com)