The South Korean government has officially denied Elon Musk’s request for documents from the Kakao super app in xAI’s lawsuit against Apple. Here are the details.
xAI might still have a shot at getting some of the requested documents
Over the past few months, xAI’s Iegal team has sent letters to several Asian super app developers, seeking documents it believes would support its claim that Apple’s App Store rules are unfair.
We explored the situation in detail in this post, but in a nutshell, here’s what’s going on: Elon Musk complained on Twitter that Apple’s partnership with OpenAI was preempting Grok from succeeding in the App Store. Immediately after that, xAI filed a lawsuit against both companies.
In the lawsuit, xAI argues a somewhat different point. The company alleges that Apple’s App Store rules unlawfully restrain super apps, as an attempt to prevent users from switching away from the iPhone. They also argue that Apple’s partnership with OpenAI reinforces this restriction against super apps.
Since acquiring Twitter, Musk has fixated on turning X into a super app, a category that has seen enormous success in Asia. These apps bundle services like ride-hailing, food delivery, payments, streaming, and chat into a single platform, a model that has yet to gain real traction in Western markets.
So, in its attempt to compel Apple to change the App Store’s rules, xAI has been resorting to an international treaty, called The Hague Convention, to formally request documents from super app companies based in Asian countries, including Alipay in China and Kakao Corporation in Korea.
In the letters xAI states that “Apple’s conduct illegally restrains competition from ‘super apps,’” and proceeds to request the following:
Please produce all requested Documents in Your possession, custody, or control, or available to You, or to which You may gain access through reasonable effort, including information in the possession of Your past and present attorneys, accountants, investigators, consultants, agents, or other persons directly or indirectly employed or retained by You, or any entity otherwise subject to Your control who maintains records on Your behalf, in Your name, or otherwise under Your control. Subject to a valid claim of privilege, please produce the entire Document if any part of that Document is responsive.
And
- Documents regarding the financial or strategic significance of selling or distributing Super Apps through [multiple app stores];
- Documents sufficient to show how You earn revenue from [the app] in the U.S. and worldwide;
- Documents regarding the ranking of [the app] on any Apple App Store List;
- Documents regarding how Super Apps affect the ability of Smartphone customers to switch Smartphones;
- Documents sufficient to show Your plans to incorporate and/or existing incorporation of Generative AI technology into [the app] and Your rationale for doing so;
- Documents regarding how Apple’s policies, programs, product changes, or other restrictions have affected Your ability to distribute or improve [the app];
Furthermore, xAI defines “Documents” as:
a. emails and other forms of correspondence;
b. presentations and slide decks;
c. notes and minutes;
d. analyses, reports, studies, experiments;
e. data, analyses of data, and any associated working documents, such as Excel
spreadsheets or other software or tools;
f. Agreements;
g. product requirement documents, product design documents; and
h. training and/or on-boarding materials.The term “Documents” is inclusive of any metadata or other embedded information within
a document.
This week, the Director of International Affairs at the Supreme Court of the Republic of Korea rejected xAI’s request for Kakao-related documents, stating that it was overly broad:
Reference is made to the above case seeking international judicial assistance to take evidence. We are informing you that, pursuant to Article 5 of the HCCH 1970 Evidence Convention, the Letter of Request cannot be executed.
Under Article 23 of the Convention, the Republic of Korea has declared that it will not execute Letters of Request issued to obtain documents for pre-trial discovery purposes. Therefore, evidence requests must specify the materials sought in detail rather than broadly stating them as all-related documents.
Please let us know if we can provide any further assistance in this matter.
Sincerely,
KIM Eun Sil
Director of International Affairs
National Court Administration
Supreme Court of the Republic of Korea
In other words, the Korean government isn’t outright rejecting the idea of allowing Kakao to decide whether to send documents, but xAI will need to be much more specific if it wants its request move forward.
What’s your take on the Korean government’s decision? Let us know in the comments.
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