Apple’s App Store pulled in close to $900 million in fees from generative AI apps during the first eight months of 2025, driven overwhelmingly by ChatGPT subscriptions. This surge highlights Apple’s growing but indirect role in the AI arms race, as it earns hefty commissions while relying on third-party developers like OpenAI to power AI experiences on its devices.
Data from analytics firm AppMagic revealed that revenue from generative AI apps on the App Store soared from approximately $35 million in January 2025 to a peak of $101 million in August. ChatGPT alone accounted for about three-quarters of the total commission income, with the AI chatbot Grok trailing at 5%.
This influx of revenue arrives even as Apple currently lacks a native, competitive AI chatbot comparable to ChatGPT. The company’s Siri assistant still struggles to match the capabilities of modern AI chatbots. Instead, Apple’s strategy leverages its dominant position in hardware: iPhones remain a primary interface for AI services, letting Apple collect commissions whenever users subscribe through its platform.
Apple’s approach to AI differs from competitors
Unlike competitors like Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic, which invest heavily in massive data centers and advanced chips to build large language models, Apple is focusing more modestly on integrating AI directly on devices using proprietary chips and personal data stored by users. This on-device approach aims for privacy while delivering AI features without the enormous cloud infrastructure.
Potential Apple-Google partnership to enhance Siri with AI
Apple and Google are reportedly working on a partnership that could embed Google’s Gemini AI model into Siri. Bloomberg estimates the deal could be worth about $1 billion annually, though financial details remain undisclosed. Ironically, Google’s App Store activities and app commissions could partly subsidize this collaboration, since the success of apps like ChatGPT generates significant App Store revenue for Apple.
Apple earns significant revenue from AI app subscriptions
Apple’s measured investment in AI contrasts with rivals spending billions on training AI models and building cloud platforms. While Apple plays catch-up in native AI assistants, it is already profiting handsomely from the AI boom through its app ecosystem.
- App Store revenue from generative AI apps in first 8 months of 2025: nearly $900 million
- January 2025 revenue: approximately $35 million
- August 2025 revenue peak: $101 million
- ChatGPT accounts for about 75% of total commission income
- Grok accounts for about 5% of total commission income
This revenue gives Apple a strong financial cushion and influence as it shapes its long-term AI roadmap.