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Eliza Labs and founder Shaw Walters filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against social media platform X on Aug. 27.
According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs are alleging that the social media platform fraudulently extracted technical information about their AI agents before deplatforming them and launching competing products.
The complaint seeks damages exceeding $75,000 and immediate restoration of the account.
In an Aug. 28 statement, Walters described the lawsuit as a last resort after months of failed negotiations.
He said:
“X and xAI realize this on some level – they just filed a lawsuit alleging that Apple and OpenAI are doing the same anticompetitive conduct to them that X is doing to us.”
Walters added that X initially invited collaboration after seeing widespread adoption of Eliza’s open-source AI agent framework.
Following meetings at X headquarters in February, the platform demanded Eliza purchase a $600,000 annual enterprise license despite already paying over $20,000 annually in fees.
Antitrust claims
An antitrust lawsuit challenges practices that harm fair competition, such as monopolies and anticompetitive behavior, to protect consumers and ensure open markets.
Eliza’s complaint alleges X violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act by leveraging monopoly power in short-form social media to suppress AI competition.
The lawsuit details how X suspended Eliza’s accounts in June 2025, then demanded extensive technical documentation under the pretense of account reinstatement.
Walters claims that X used this information to develop nearly identical AI features, including 3D avatars, voice integration, and telephone capabilities, which were launched through xAI’s products.
He added that X requested detailed explanations of Eliza’s framework architecture, endpoint functionality, and implementation specifics while developing competing products.
Remedies include platform restoration
The lawsuit seeks multiple forms of relief, including a declaratory judgment that X lacks Section 230 immunity for anticompetitive deplatforming, injunctions preventing future exclusionary conduct, and account restoration with full platform access.
Monetary remedies include disgorgement of X’s unjust enrichment from copying Eliza’s technology, compensation for fraudulent misrepresentation, and unfair competition damages, as well as treble damages under the Sherman Act provisions.
The plaintiffs also request punitive damages and attorneys’ fees. The lawsuit comes days after Elon Musk’s xAI sued Apple and OpenAI on Aug. 25.
Musk’s lawsuit alleged that the companies conspired to suppress AI competition through Apple’s exclusive ChatGPT integration and App Store favoritism. The lawsuit claims Apple’s partnership with OpenAI makes it “impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store.”
The parallel litigation highlights escalating legal battles over AI market control, with Musk pursuing antitrust claims while facing very similar allegations from Eliza Labs.