Apple Lawsuit News Today: $250M AI Settlement and Siri Payouts

The biggest piece of Apple lawsuit news for consumers is a $250 million class action settlement, filed for court approval on May 5, 2026, that resolves claims Apple misled buyers about the artificial intelligence features on recent iPhones. Roughly 36 million devices are covered, and eligible buyers can expect between $25 and $95 per phone. Apple is also fighting a federal antitrust case, an App Store contempt ruling that reached the Supreme Court, European Union penalties under the Digital Markets Act, and several nine- and ten-figure patent verdicts.

The $250 Million iPhone AI Settlement

The consolidated case, Landsheft v. Apple Inc. (No. 5:25-cv-02668, Northern District of California), grew out of lawsuits filed in 2025 alleging Apple used marketing for “Apple Intelligence” and an overhauled Siri to sell iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 Pro models at premium prices while the advertised features did not work and were not expected to arrive for years.¹ The complaint said the iPhone 16 was “virtually indistinguishable” from prior models without the promised AI functionality, and that Apple quietly pulled ads featuring the missing capabilities. Apple publicly acknowledged in March 2025 that the features remained unavailable and would roll out “in the coming year,” with a fully overhauled Siri potentially not reaching consumers until 2027.²

Who Is Eligible

U.S. residents who bought any of the following devices between June 10, 2024, and March 29, 2025, for a purpose other than resale can claim:

iPhone 16, iPhone 16e, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max
iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max

The base payment is $25 per device. Depending on how many people file claims, that number could rise to $95.³ The $250 million fund is non-reversionary, so unclaimed money does not go back to Apple.⁴

How and When To Claim

Apple will supply a list of eligible customers to a settlement administrator called Verita, which will send notices by email or postal mail. You then have 90 days from the date of your individual notice to file. A preliminary approval hearing before Judge Noël Wise was scheduled for June 17, 2026, and payouts are expected after September 2026 if the court approves the deal.³¹

Apple denied any wrongdoing. A company spokesperson described the case as being about “the availability of two additional features,” saying, “We resolved this matter to stay focused on doing what we do best.”⁵ As part of the deal, Apple committed to delivering the promised Siri features through future software updates at no additional charge.⁶

The Earlier Siri Eavesdropping Settlement

Don’t confuse the new AI case with an older Siri privacy settlement that has already paid out. In Lopez v. Apple Inc. (No. 4:19-cv-04577, Northern District of California), plaintiffs alleged Siri-enabled devices recorded private conversations during unintended activations and that Apple shared those recordings with third-party contractors and advertisers.⁷ Some plaintiffs said they received targeted advertisements that seemed to reflect private conversations.⁸

Senior U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White granted final approval for a $95 million settlement on September 4, 2025.⁹ The class covered current or former owners of Siri-enabled devices who had unintended activations between September 17, 2014, and December 31, 2024, with payments of up to $20 per device for as many as five devices. Payments were distributed in January 2026.¹⁰ Apple denied all allegations and said Siri data was never used to build marketing profiles or sold to advertisers.⁸ The claims window has closed.

The DOJ Antitrust Case

The U.S. Department of Justice, joined by several states and Washington, D.C., sued Apple in March 2024, accusing the company of unlawfully monopolizing the smartphone market. The complaint, filed in the District of New Jersey as United States v. Apple Inc. (No. 2:24-cv-04055), alleges Apple’s fees and technical barriers on third-party app developers, digital wallets, smartwatches, and messaging services destroy competition.¹¹

On June 29, 2026, U.S. District Judge Julien Neals denied Apple’s motion to dismiss, clearing the case to move forward. Apple called the lawsuit “wrong on the facts and the law” and said it would “vigorously fight it in court.” No trial date has been publicly scheduled.¹²

Epic Games and the App Store Fight

Apple’s long-running dispute with Epic Games entered a new phase in 2025 when U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers found Apple in civil contempt for violating a 2021 injunction. That order required Apple to let developers include links to external payment methods. Epic argued Apple gutted the rule by imposing a 27% commission on purchases made through those links.¹³

The Ninth Circuit upheld the contempt finding in December 2025 and unanimously denied Apple’s request for rehearing in March 2026.¹⁴ On May 6, 2026, Justice Elena Kagan rejected Apple’s request to temporarily block the contempt ruling while the company prepared a full appeal.¹³ Judge Gonzalez Rogers also referred Apple and an executive to federal prosecutors for a potential criminal contempt investigation.¹⁵

The contempt finding also produced a separate class action, Pure Sweat Basketball Inc. v. Apple Inc. (No. 4:25-cv-03858, Northern District of California), filed on May 2, 2025, on behalf of iOS developers. The complaint estimates more than 100,000 developers were affected, with damages potentially reaching “hundreds of millions or even billions” of dollars. Apple denied violating the injunction and has since modified its U.S. App Store policies to comply.¹⁵

EU Digital Markets Act Penalties

The European Commission fined Apple €500 million (about $570 million) for violating the Digital Markets Act by restricting how app developers could tell customers about deals and alternatives outside the App Store.¹⁶ Apple appealed, arguing the decision “goes far beyond what the law requires.” A judgment is not expected before the second half of 2026.¹⁷

Apple also asked the Commission for an exemption from DMA interoperability obligations so it could withhold its new Siri AI features from Europe. The request was denied. The Commission said an exemption would block rival AI agents from competing on equal footing on iPhones and that “absolutely nothing in the DMA prohibits Apple from introducing new products in the EU.”¹⁸

Patent Verdicts

Apple is defending against a cluster of patent claims with substantial financial exposure.

Masimo (Apple Watch). A federal jury in November 2025 ordered Apple to pay $634 million to health technology company Masimo over Apple Watch heart rate notification features that infringed a Masimo patent. Apple appealed in December 2025.¹⁹ Separately, the Federal Circuit affirmed on March 19, 2026, that Apple violated the Tariff Act by importing Apple Watch models that infringed Masimo’s blood oxygen measurement patents. A limited exclusion order barring the import of those watches remains in effect.²⁰

Optis Cellular Technology. In the United Kingdom, the Court of Appeal recalculated Apple’s royalty obligations for 4G standard-essential patents, setting a rate of $0.15 per unit and increasing the total from $56.43 million to $502 million plus interest. The UK Supreme Court granted Apple permission to appeal on October 31, 2025, with a hearing scheduled for late June 2026.²¹ In related U.S. proceedings, the Federal Circuit overturned a separate $300 million damages award against Apple, finding the jury had received improper instructions.²²

TOT Power Control. On July 1, 2025, a Delaware federal jury found that Apple’s iPhones, iPads, and Apple Watches infringed a patent held by Spanish company TOT Power Control relating to 3G power-saving technology, and ordered Apple to pay $110.7 million. Apple has said it plans to appeal.²³

Apple Watch Battery Settlement

Apple also resolved a class action over Apple Watch battery defects. In Smith et al. v. Apple Inc. (No. 4:21-cv-09527, Northern District of California), the company agreed to a $20 million settlement for owners of Apple Watch Series 1, 2, and 3 models who reported battery swelling. Payments, issued as prepaid Mastercards, began reaching claimants by August 2025.²⁴ Apple denied that the devices suffered from battery swell issues.²⁵

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Forbes. Apple Siri Eavesdropping Payout Approved
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