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Apple responds to Elon Musk’s accusation of rigged App Store charts

MacDailyNews

Aug 13

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On Monday, Elon Musk used X to express frustration that Apple rarely highlights X or Grok on the App Store, accusing the company of unfairly promoting ChatGPT. He threatened immediate legal action by xAI. Apple has since addressed Musk’s claim.

Hey @Apple App Store, why do you refuse to put either 𝕏 or Grok in your “Must Have” section when 𝕏 is the #1 news app in the world and Grok is #5 among all apps?
Are you playing politics? What gives? Inquiring minds want to know. https://t.co/3wenLZGtwG
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 11, 2025

Apple is behaving in a manner that makes it impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store, which is an unequivocal antitrust violation.
xAI will take immediate legal action.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2025

Mark Gurman via X:
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Apple on @elonmusk’s claims: “The App Store is designed to be fair and free of bias. We feature thousands of apps through charts, algorithmic recommendations, and curated lists selected by experts using objective criteria.”
Company adds: “Our goal is to offer safe discovery for users and valuable opportunities for developers, collaborating with many to increase app visibility in rapidly evolving categories.”

Apple on @elonmusk’s claims: "The App Store is designed to be fair and free of bias. We feature thousands of apps through charts, algorithmic recommendations, and curated lists selected by experts using objective criteria.” https://t.co/w4NFINOF9x
— Mark Gurman (@markgurman) August 12, 2025

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MacDailyNews Take: Note that Apple very carefully never says that its App Store charts are based solely on the number of downloads each app receives, as most users are likely to assume.

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