Elon Musk has announced that he may ban iPhones from all his companies due to the newly announced OpenAI integrations by Apple at WWDC 2024. In a series of posts on X, the Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI CEO expressed concerns, stating that if Apple integrates OpenAI at the OS level, Apple devices would be prohibited in his businesses. Visitors with Apple devices would need to check them in at the door, where they would be stored in a Faraday cage.
Musk’s posts appear to misunderstand or cast doubt on the nature of Apple’s relationship with OpenAI. Both companies have stated that users must provide permission before any questions, documents, or photos are sent to ChatGPT. However, Musk believes that OpenAI is deeply integrated into Apple’s operating system, potentially compromising personal and private data.
Apple’s new feature in iOS 18 allows users to ask Siri questions, and if the assistant believes ChatGPT can help, it will ask for permission to share the query and present the answer directly, eliminating the need to open the ChatGPT app. Similar permissions are required for sharing photos, PDFs, or other documents.
Musk prefers that OpenAI’s capabilities remain confined to a dedicated app, rather than being integrated with Siri. He responded to comments suggesting that OpenAI does not have access to the device, asserting that this explanation is inadequate and should remain as an app.
A YouTuber, Marques Brownlee, further explained Apple Intelligence on X, to which Musk responded critically, accusing Apple of compromising user privacy by handing data over to a third-party AI. Musk also criticized Apple CEO Tim Cook directly, threatening to ban Apple devices from his companies if Cook did not halt the integrations.
Musk’s criticism extends to the idea that Apple should develop its own AI instead of relying on OpenAI, which he believes cannot ensure security and privacy. He argues that Apple is unable to fully understand what happens to user data once it is handed over to OpenAI, thus compromising user privacy.
Apple also introduced a “compose” feature allowing users to access ChatGPT system-wide within Writing Tools. This feature enables users to request ChatGPT to generate content like bedtime stories or images, facilitating access without creating an account, which benefits OpenAI by increasing user requests.
Musk’s complaints seem aimed at raising user awareness about potential privacy issues, although it is speculated that his criticism might be muted if users could set their own preferred AI bot, such as his own xAI’s Grok, as the default for Siri requests or writing help.
Apple maintains that user requests and information are not logged, and ChatGPT subscribers can connect their accounts to access paid features. These integrations will be available on iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia later this year, limited to iPhone Pro 15 models and devices with M1 or newer chips. OpenAI confirms that requests are not stored, and users’ IP addresses are obscured, with data preferences applying under ChatGPT’s policies for connected accounts.
