Apple Inc. agreed to pay $250 million to resolve a federal class-action lawsuit alleging the company falsely advertised AI-powered Siri capabilities for the iPhone 16 that were not available at the time of sale, misleading consumers who purchased devices in reliance on those representations [1][4]. The settlement received preliminary approval from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, with a final fairness hearing scheduled for June 17 [1][2].
The lawsuit, *Landsheft v. Apple Inc.*, was filed in the Northern District of California on behalf of lead plaintiff Peter Landsheft and a putative class of iPhone purchasers [3]. Plaintiffs alleged that Apple marketed enhanced Siri features under its "Apple Intelligence" branding as available or imminent at the time of the iPhone 16's launch, when in fact those features were not yet functional [3][4]. Clarkson Law Firm served as plaintiff counsel [3]. The claims sounded in consumer protection and false advertising under federal and state law, targeting the gap between Apple's marketing representations and the actual state of its AI product rollout at the point of sale [1][3].
The settlement class covers purchasers of iPhone 16 models and certain iPhone 15 models bought between June 10, 2024, and March 29, 2025, encompassing approximately 37 million devices [2][4]. Qualifying class members may receive up to $95 per device, subject to the total fund and the number of valid claims submitted [2]. Apple has not admitted liability as part of the agreement, a standard condition in class settlements of this nature.
The June 17 hearing will determine whether the court grants final approval. Class members must submit claims before any distribution occurs, and the claims administration process is expected to open following final approval [2]. The settlement's size relative to the subject matter, marketing claims tied to an AI feature suite, signals that courts and litigants are prepared to apply traditional consumer-protection frameworks to AI-driven product promotion without awaiting specialized AI regulation [1][4]. Companies that advertise AI capabilities ahead of actual deployment now face quantified litigation risk in the hundreds of millions of dollars.