The report said OpenAI is considering options including issuing a formal breach-of-contract notice to Apple, although the company has not yet decided whether to pursue legal proceedings.
According to Bloomberg, OpenAI is unlikely to take formal action before the conclusion of its ongoing legal battle involving Elon Musk. The company still hopes to resolve concerns privately without going to court.
The partnership between OpenAI and Apple was announced during Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2024 in June 2024. The collaboration integrated ChatGPT into Apple’s ecosystem, including Siri and Visual Intelligence features on iPhones.
OpenAI reportedly expected the arrangement to generate billions of dollars annually through new subscriptions and increased visibility for ChatGPT. However, Bloomberg said the integration has remained difficult for users to discover and has generated far lower revenue than projected.
Internal research cited in the report indicated that iPhone users still rely far more heavily on the standalone ChatGPT app than Apple’s built-in integration. The AI responses reportedly appear only when users specifically mention “ChatGPT”, and the interface inside Apple’s system displays limited information compared to OpenAI’s own application.
Bloomberg quoted an unnamed OpenAI executive as saying the company had fulfilled its responsibilities from a product perspective, while accusing Apple of failing to adequately promote the integration.
The report also highlighted growing tensions between the two companies over data privacy concerns and OpenAI’s expanding hardware ambitions.
OpenAI recently acquired former Apple design chief Jony Ive’s hardware startup in a deal reportedly valued at around $6.5 billion and has been recruiting engineers from Apple’s hardware division with significantly higher compensation packages.
According to Bloomberg, negotiations to revise the existing partnership have stalled. The situation has reportedly become more complicated as Apple prepares to integrate rival AI models including Claude from Anthropic and Gemini from Google into future versions of iOS.
The report also said Apple has faced mounting pressure over delays to its own artificial intelligence products and recently agreed to a $250 million settlement tied to allegations of misleading advertising regarding Siri capabilities.
Following the report, Apple shares reportedly fell by as much as 1.2% during Thursday trading.
