Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey deliver a powerful wake-up call to Apple, sending a serious warning shot across their bow

Elon Musk, the visionary entrepreneur and business magnate, is undeniably a force to be reckoned with. With his boundless ambition and innovative mindset, Elon Musk has repeatedly proven his ability to disrupt industries and push the boundaries of what is possible. As the CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company, Elon Musk has cemented his status as a trailblazer in various fields. Elon Musk's relentless drive for progress and his penchant for taking on audacious challenges have earned him a reputation as a maverick. It is no surprise that Elon Musk's name is frequently associated with groundbreaking ideas, revolutionary technologies, and bold visions for the future. Elon Musk's unwavering commitment to pushing the limits of innovation has propelled him to the forefront of global attention, making him one of the most influential and talked-about figures in the business world today.

Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey have issued a strong warning to Apple, as the tech giant considers removing the Damus app from the App Store. Damus is a decentralized social messaging app that has received support from Dorsey.

What are others reading:

The recent tensions that had strained the friendship between Musk and Dorsey earlier this year appear to have been resolved. Dorsey has resumed his active presence on Twitter, and Musk frequently responds to his posts on the platform. These two billionaire entrepreneurs, known for their serial ventures, had publicly expressed their differences in the past.

In December, a clash occurred between the two when Musk claimed that Twitter 1.0 had neglected child safety on its platform.

"On Dec. 9, Musk exclaimed, "It is a crime that they refused to take action on child exploitation for years!"

Dorsey swiftly pushed back, stating, "This is false. I don't know what happened in the past year. But to say we didn't take action for years isn't true. You can make all my emails public to verify. The company took away my access to email, or I would provide them."

Apple is considering the possibility of banning the Damus app, a decentralized social messaging platform backed by Jack Dorsey, from its App Store. This decision has drawn the attention of Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey, who, despite their previous disagreements earlier this year, appear to have resolved their differences.

Dorsey has once again become active on Twitter, the platform he co-founded but now belongs to Musk after his acquisition of the microblogging site for $44 billion. Although Dorsey is no longer in control, he remains a shareholder, having transferred his stake valued at $2 billion in October.

In a recent exchange on Twitter, Dorsey raised concerns about America's issues, to which Musk responded by suggesting that social media addiction could be one of the problems affecting the nation. Musk also conducted an interview on Twitter with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Democratic nominee in the 2024 presidential election, thereby introducing Kennedy to his massive following of 143 million users and granting him unprecedented exposure.

These interactions demonstrate a renewed connection between Musk and Dorsey, signaling a potential resolution of their past conflicts.

Dorsey's support for Kennedy is evident in his recent actions. Musk, in turn, has once again shown support for his friend by joining him in denouncing a potential action by Apple against an app backed by Dorsey. Damus, a decentralized social messaging app, recently issued a warning on June 13th, stating that Apple is threatening to remove the app from its App Store within 14 days.

Shortly after, Damus provided an update, revealing that Apple is willing to keep the app on the App Store if Damus agrees to remove certain payment functionality. Damus, built on the decentralized social network Nostr, allows users to make micro-donations in Bitcoin using the Lightning Network—a network that facilitates fast and low-cost transactions of fractions of Bitcoins. These payments on Nostr are referred to as "zaps."

According to Damus, Apple has demanded that the developers remove this payment feature, or else face a complete banishment from the App Store. The concern from Apple, based in Cupertino, California, stems from the worry that content creators may use zaps to sell digital content on their platform.

According to Damus' announcement on Twitter, Apple has informed them that the app will be removed from the App Store in 14 days. Apple's reasoning behind this decision is their policy that disallows the presence of "zaps" on their platform, as they have the potential to be utilized by content creators for selling digital content. Damus expressed disappointment over this development, particularly because it coincides with their scheduled talk at the Oslo Freedom Forum, where they intended to discuss how decentralized social networks with Lightning integration offer financial freedom to a wider audience.

Furthermore, Damus stated that they are required to remove the "zap button" on posts as Apple categorizes it as a means of selling digital content. However, they clarified that zaps are still allowed on profiles, although this limitation significantly impacts Damus' functionality.

As of now, there has been no immediate response from Apple regarding this matter.

Apple has gained a reputation for prohibiting app developers from offering in-app payments to sell additional content or add-ons unless those payments are processed through Apple, which takes a 30% commission.

Upon being alerted about the situation, Dorsey, the CEO of Block (formerly known as Square), immediately brought attention to the dispute between Damus and Apple. He publicly called on Apple CEO Tim Cook to reconsider the threat.

Dorsey expressed his disagreement with Apple's stance, stating, "This is still incorrect, Apple. Tipping on posts is not selling digital content. It's a form of feedback." He questioned the rationale behind limiting the ability for people to send Bitcoin to one another, emphasizing the potential for building a truly global payment protocol for the internet, which he believes would greatly benefit Apple.

In his message to Tim Cook, Dorsey highlighted the opportunity for Apple's company to reap substantial advantages by embracing a more open approach to global payments.

Dorsey's stance received support from Musk, who also voiced his criticism of Apple's position. Musk believes that if Apple continues to utilize the App Store as a means to enforce its 30% commission, the company risks alienating a significant portion of its user base. Drawing from his own experience, Musk recalls a similar issue he faced with Apple last year regarding the same commission structure.

Musk warned Apple that if the company chooses to compete against the entire world, it will find itself in opposition to the global community. He emphasized that such a scenario is not a winning one for Apple.

Dorsey agreed with Musk's sentiments, acknowledging the potential challenges Apple could face. He highlighted the immense benefits that Apple could reap by embracing and building upon Bitcoin, suggesting that Apple has a history of taking early technologies and protocols and making them accessible to all.

Musk also raised concerns about Apple's 30% commission on money transfer and funding apps like Damus, Patreon, and Venmo, considering it a significant issue.

The combined opinions of Dorsey and Musk demonstrate their shared belief that Apple's current approach and commission structure could have negative repercussions and potentially hinder its relationship with users and developers alike.