Elon Musk Threatens To Ban Apple Devices At His Companies Over OpenAI Integration

Elon Musk declared Monday his intention to ban Apple devices at his companies if the iPhone maker integrates OpenAI at the operating system level.

The billionaire entrepreneur, who leads X, car manufacturer Tesla, and space firm SpaceX, said in a social media post that Apple-OpenAI integration is an "unacceptable security violation."

He added that visitors to his companies would be required to surrender their Apple devices upon entry, which would then be securely stored in a Faraday cage.

It comes following Apple's announcement earlier in the day on the incorporation of AI features across its apps and operating platforms, along with a partnership with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT technology into its devices.

Despite Apple's assurances of privacy-centric AI development, Musk wrote on X: "It's patently absurd that Apple isn't smart enough to make their own AI, yet is somehow capable of ensuring that OpenAI will protect your security & privacy!"

Musk's feud with OpenAI is well-documented, as evidenced by his legal action against the organization and its CEO Sam Altman in March.

Musk accused them of deviating from the original altruistic mission of OpenAI, which he co-founded in 2015, to pursue profit-driven motives.

In response, Musk established his own startup, xAI, aimed at challenging OpenAI and developing an alternative to the popular ChatGPT chatbot.

Despite facing legal battles, xAI has made significant strides, recently securing a valuation of $24 billion in its last funding round, which saw a substantial $6 billion influx in series B funding.

For months, pressure has been on Apple to persuade doubters on its AI strategy, after Microsoft and Google rolled out products in rapid-fire succession.

Apple executives have stressed that privacy safeguards have been built into Apple Intelligence to make its Siri digital assistant and other products smarter, while not pilfering user data.

Apple Intelligence will enable users to create their own emojis based on a description in everyday language, or to generate brief summaries of e-mails in the mailbox. Users will be able to make their requests to Siri in writing or orally.

Apple Intelligence will also be added to a new version of the iOS 18 operating system. The AI enhancements also included integrating ChatGPT with operating system models later this year.