Singapore Rejects xAI’s Document Requests in Lawsuit Against Apple and OpenAI

Singapore has rejected several requests from Elon Musk's xAI to obtain documents from local technology companies as part of its ongoing lawsuit against Apple and OpenAI. The decision marks another setback for xAI as it tries to gather evidence to support claims that Apple and OpenAI gained an unfair advantage in the artificial intelligence market.



The lawsuit centers on two major allegations. First, xAI claims that Apple and OpenAI worked together to give ChatGPT favorable treatment on the App Store. Second, the company argues that Apple's App Store policies make it harder for X to evolve into a super app similar to popular platforms across Asia.



To support these claims, xAI sought documents from several international companies through the Hague Evidence Convention, a legal framework that allows courts to request evidence from foreign entities in civil and commercial cases.



Singapore's Objections



Singapore's Attorney-General's Chambers informed the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas that it could not approve requests involving Gojek, Grab, GrabTaxi, and WeChat.



According to the response, the case involves antitrust and unfair competition claims, which Singapore believes fall outside the scope of the Hague Evidence Convention. The authorities also said the requests failed to clearly identify the entities involved, noting that some company names listed by xAI did not match records in Singapore's business registry.



Singapore also argued that the requests were overly broad because they sought large categories of information rather than specific documents. The requested materials included data related to app usage, revenue, in-app payments, App Store rankings, customer behavior, super app development, and future generative AI plans.



The Attorney-General's Chambers stated that the requests appeared to be part of a "fishing expedition," which is not permitted under the Hague Convention. The decision follows a similar ruling earlier this year when South Korea rejected xAI's attempt to obtain documents from Kakao, adding another hurdle to Musk's legal battle against Apple and OpenAI.