xAI wins partial court backing in Apple-OpenAI antitrust fight while Judge rules Tim Cook is excluded from discovery order

xAI, the artificial intelligence firm founded by Elon Musk, won a partial court victory in its ongoing antitrust battle against Apple and OpenAI. The court ruled that xAI could seek documents from Apple’s software chief, Craig Federighi, whose senior role and involvement in Apple’s intelligence projects were key in the decision.¹²³⁵

Judge Hal R. Ray Jr. stated that xAI provided adequate justification to add Federighi as a document custodian, stating his crucial oversight role in software engineering and decisions related to OpenAI's integration with Apple. The ruling requires Apple to produce relevant records connected to Federighi by June 17, 2026.

Conversely, the judge denied xAI's request to include Tim Cook, Apple's CEO, in the discovery process. The court determined that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate that Cook had unique information not available from Federighi or other sources. The ruling also included restrictions on a separate discovery request concerning Apple’s ties with Google.⁴

This partial win illustrates the complexities of the ongoing antitrust scrutiny faced by tech giants and highlights the difficulties xAI encounters in proving the necessity of broader discovery against high-profile executives.