OpenAI threatens legal action

OpenAI is weighing legal action against Apple over the companies’ 2024 agreement to bring ChatGPT into Siri and other Apple software, according to Reuters and Bloomberg. Reuters reported on May 14 that OpenAI’s lawyers are working with an outside law firm after efforts to renegotiate the arrangement stalled, citing a person familiar with the matter. Apple did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment. The dispute comes less than two years after Apple and OpenAI announced the partnership at Apple’s June 10, 2024 developer conference. (money.usnews.com) ### How did the Apple-OpenAI deal originally work? (money.usnews.com) Apple and OpenAI said on June 10, 2024 that ChatGPT would be integrated into iOS, iPadOS and macOS, with Siri able to hand certain requests to OpenAI’s model. OpenAI said users would be asked before questions, documents or photos were sent to ChatGPT, and Apple said the feature would also appear inside systemwide Writing Tools. OpenAI said in its 2024 announcement that users could access ChatGPT for free without creating an account, while paid subscribers could connect their accounts to use premium features inside Apple’s software. That structure gave OpenAI a path to subscription sign-ups from Apple devices, even though the companies did not present the arrangement as exclusive. (money.usnews.com) ### What does OpenAI say went wrong? Reuters reported on May 14 that OpenAI believed the Apple deal would lead to more ChatGPT subscriptions and deeper integration across Apple apps, but the relationship deteriorated as those expectations were not met. The same report said OpenAI wanted to resolve the dispute without litigation but is now evaluating options that include a breach-of-contract notice. (openai.com) Bloomberg, as described by Reuters and other outlets, said the companies have clashed over how prominently ChatGPT would appear inside Apple’s products and how far the integration would extend. Those reported tensions center on product placement and operating terms rather than exclusivity, according to Reuters’ account of the matter. (openai.com) ### Is OpenAI preparing a lawsuit now? Reuters reported that one option under review is notifying Apple of a breach of contract without filing a full lawsuit. That means legal escalation is being prepared, but a court filing had not been reported as of May 14. (money.usnews.com) The New York Times separately reported on May 14 that OpenAI had become unhappy with the way Apple integrated ChatGPT into its devices. TechCrunch, citing Bloomberg’s reporting, said OpenAI was frustrated that the partnership did not deliver the subscriber growth and product prominence it expected. (money.usnews.com) ### Is Apple’s broader AI strategy part of the dispute? Reuters reported that Apple is testing integrations with Anthropic’s Claude and Google’s Gemini as part of a broader push to let users access third-party AI models. Reuters also said a person familiar with the matter described Apple’s work with other providers as not being the trigger for legal action because the OpenAI partnership was not intended to be exclusive. (money.usnews.com) Reports earlier in May said Apple is preparing software that would let users choose among outside AI services more broadly across Siri and other Apple Intelligence features. (nytimes.com) Those reports suggest OpenAI’s role inside Apple’s software could become one option among several rather than the main outside model relationship. ### What happens next? Apple’s annual Worldwide Developers Conference is expected in June, and Reuters said the company is likely to give more detail there on its artificial-intelligence plans. Any formal notice from OpenAI, including a breach claim, would likely emerge before or alongside renewed negotiations, based on the options Reuters said are under review. (money.usnews.com) June is now the next clear milestone for both companies: Apple is expected to outline its Siri and model-partner roadmap, while OpenAI has not publicly announced any filing or legal demand. Reuters said OpenAI still wanted to resolve the dispute without a lawsuit, leaving the immediate next step in the hands of the two companies and their lawyers. (techcrunch.com) (money.usnews.com)