Apple is facing a federal lawsuit over claims that it misled customers about the now-delayed Apple Intelligence features. I’m sure many saw this coming, especially in the U.S.
According to Axios, the lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court in San Jose, accuses Apple of false advertising and unfair competition, arguing that the company heavily promoted AI-powered capabilities that won’t be available as promised.
The lawsuit seeks class action status and unspecified financial damages on behalf of consumers who purchased Apple Intelligence-compatible iPhones and devices, expecting advanced AI features—including an upgraded Siri—that have now been pushed back.
“Apple’s advertisements saturated the internet, television, and other airwaves to cultivate a clear and reasonable consumer expectation that these transformative features would be available upon the iPhone’s release,” the lawsuit states. It alleges that Apple used AI as a marketing tool to drive excitement, justify premium pricing, and compete with rivals in the AI space, despite knowing the features were not ready.
One key example cited in the lawsuit is a September ad featuring actor Bella Ramsey showcasing Siri’s new AI capabilities. That ad has since been removed from YouTube, but the lawsuit claims Apple has not retracted all misleading marketing materials.
The case was brought by Clarkson Law Firm, which has previously sued Google and OpenAI over AI-related issues.
Typically, whenever a class action lawsuit is successful in the U.S., it sets a precedent and a copy-cat lawsuit ends up being started in Canada (especially when it involves Apple). It will be interesting to see how this one plays out–grab your popcorn folks.
