The South Korean government has refused to execute xAI’s request for documents from Kakao in its lawsuit against Apple. The decision does not end the effort, but it forces xAI to narrow its demands before any material can be considered.
xAI Is Trying to Prove
Over the past few months, xAI has sent formal letters to major Asian “super app” companies. The goal is to gather evidence to support its claim that Apple’s App Store rules restrict competition.
The dispute began after Elon Musk accused Apple of favoring OpenAI in the App Store, which he said hurt Grok’s chances. Soon after, xAI filed a lawsuit against both Apple and OpenAI. In court filings, xAI argues that Apple’s policies make it harder for super apps to compete and limit how easily users can switch away from the iPhone. It also claims that Apple’s partnership with OpenAI reinforces those limits.
Since buying Twitter, Musk has pushed to turn X into a super app. In Asia, this model is common. These apps combine payments, messaging, shopping, food delivery, and other services in one place. xAI now points to this model as evidence that Apple’s rules block similar competition on iOS.
To support its case, xAI has used the Hague Convention to seek documents from companies such as Alipay in China and Kakao in South Korea.
What xAI Asked For
In its request, xAI argued that Apple’s conduct “illegally restrains competition from super apps” and asked for broad categories of records. These included financial data, App Store rankings, revenue details, product plans involving generative AI, and internal material on how Apple’s policies affected app distribution.
It also defined “documents” very widely. The list covered emails, presentations, reports, spreadsheets, agreements, design files, and training materials, along with any related metadata.
South Korea Said No
This week, the Director of International Affairs at the Supreme Court of the Republic of Korea rejected the request as too 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”
The ruling does not block all cooperation. Instead, it says xAI must make a narrower and more precise request. Broad demands for “all related documents” will not be executed under Korean law.
Whats Next
xAI still has a path forward. If it rewrites its request with specific document types and clear limits, Korean authorities may allow it to proceed.
For now, the decision slows xAI’s effort to gather overseas evidence against Apple. It also highlights a key challenge in the case. International courts will not act on sweeping discovery demands, even when the dispute involves major technology companies and global competition.
