X lawsuit vs. Apple and OpenAI stays in Fort Worth, Texas; judge suggests they move there

A federal judge has ruled that the lawsuit filed by X Corp. and xAI against Apple and OpenAI will remain in Fort Worth, Texas, despite the companies having only minimal ties to the area. Judge Mark Pittman issued a pointed four-page order, suggesting that the involved parties might want to consider relocating their headquarters to Fort Worth, where they sought to have the antitrust case heard. In a notable footnote, the judge directed the companies to the Fort Worth Business Services website to initiate the relocation process. This order highlights a trend where some plaintiffs, particularly those with conservative affiliations, file lawsuits in Fort Worth to increase their chances of favorable outcomes, given the political leanings of the judges there. X and Tesla, both under the control of billionaire Elon Musk, have previously engaged in similar practices. Judge Pittman, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, expressed criticism of the tactic known as forum-shopping. He pointed out that the Fort Worth division has a significantly busier docket than the Dallas division, which has more judges available. Notably, neither Apple nor OpenAI has established a substantial presence in Fort Worth beyond a few retail locations. Pittman remarked that if minimal connections were sufficient for venue selection, nearly any district in the U.S. could host the lawsuit. X Corp. is based in Bastrop, Texas, located about 200 miles south of Fort Worth, while Apple and OpenAI are both headquartered in California. The judge also noted that despite the lack of substantial connections to Fort Worth, he felt compelled to keep the case there because neither defendant had requested a venue change before the deadline he set. He acknowledged the plaintiffs' choice of venue but emphasized the need for reasonable venue selection in legal proceedings. Musk's companies filed the lawsuit in August, alleging that Apple and OpenAI are engaged in an anticompetitive scheme to dominate the AI market. They accused Apple of prioritizing OpenAI's ChatGPT in App Store rankings while sidelining competitors like xAI's Grok. Meanwhile, OpenAI has chosen not to comment on the matter, referring inquiries back to its legal filings. X and Apple have yet to respond to requests for comments on the ongoing case.