OpenAI’s Apple Deal Reportedly Gets Tense As Gemini Enters Siri
Apple’s big AI era is starting to look a bit messy, bro.
According to a Bloomberg report cited by Android Authority, OpenAI is reportedly looking at possible legal action against Apple over the way ChatGPT has been integrated into Apple software. No lawsuit has been filed, and the report says OpenAI still wants to settle things without going to court. But the fact that lawyers are apparently already involved tells you the vibes are not exactly friendly right now.
The core issue: OpenAI reportedly expected its Apple partnership to be a much bigger win.
When Apple announced ChatGPT support in 2024, it looked like a clean shortcut for both sides. Apple needed stronger AI features for Siri and Apple Intelligence, while OpenAI suddenly had a direct path into millions of iPhones, iPads, and Macs. On paper, that should have meant more people discovering ChatGPT, more paid subscriptions, and deeper integration across Apple’s ecosystem.
But based on the report, OpenAI feels Apple has not pushed the integration hard enough. ChatGPT is available through features like Siri, Writing Tools, Visual Intelligence, and Image Playground, but the experience reportedly feels limited compared with using the standalone ChatGPT app. Bloomberg also reports that OpenAI’s own research suggests Apple users are more likely to use the ChatGPT app directly than access it through Apple’s built-in tools.
That matters because Apple’s AI rollout is already under pressure. Siri has been criticised for lagging behind newer AI assistants, and some promised Apple Intelligence features have been delayed. Apple also recently settled a case for US$250 million over claims linked to advertising certain Apple Intelligence capabilities.
For Malaysian and SEA users, this whole drama is worth watching because iPhones are premium devices here. If you are paying RM4,000 to RM7,000 for an iPhone, the AI features cannot feel like some hidden bonus menu you only discover by accident. People here use their phones for work, study, content creation, gaming comms, travel planning, and language switching between English, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil, and local slang. If Apple’s AI layer is clunky or watered down, users will just open ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, or whatever app works faster.
The timing is also spicy because Apple has already confirmed it is working with Google to use Gemini models in Siri and Apple Intelligence. Apple is also reportedly exploring a possible Anthropic partnership. OpenAI reportedly says Apple bringing in other AI models is not the reason it may take legal steps, since the deal was not exclusive. Still, it is hard to ignore the optics: ChatGPT was supposed to help Apple look AI-ready, and now Gemini is moving into the same space.
For users, more model choices could actually be good. Imagine Siri being able to route different tasks to different AI systems depending on what you need: writing help, image understanding, coding, search-style answers, or deeper assistant tasks. But for OpenAI, the question is whether Apple gave ChatGPT enough visibility to actually benefit from the partnership.
This is also a reminder that AI partnerships are not magic. Big logos on a keynote slide do not automatically turn into great user experiences. If the feature is buried, limited, or feels worse than the original app, people will skip it.
For now, nothing has been decided legally. But if OpenAI and Apple cannot smooth this out, one of the most important AI partnerships in consumer tech could become a very public headache — right as Apple needs to prove its AI strategy is more than just delayed Siri promises.
Source: Android Authority
