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How to Claim Up to $95 From Apple’s $250 Million Settlement
Company allegedly misled buyers by overhyping AI featuresThe claim window is now open after the tech giant allegedly misled buyers by overhyping AI features
5-minute read
Some iPhone owners will be eligible to receive $25 to $95 over claims that Apple oversold its artificial intelligence system, Apple Intelligence.
Klaudia Radecka/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Key takeaways
- Payouts apply to iPhone 16 and some iPhone 15 purchases made during a specific 2024-2025 window.
- You could get $25 per device, or more if fewer claims are filed.
- You have about three months to file a claim.
Eligible iPhone owners can now claim their share of the $250 million that Apple agreed to pay to settle class action legal claims over alleged misleading advertising stemming from overhyped artificial intelligence features the company never delivered. If the settlement, which is still pending final approval, receives a judge’s blessing, it will put money back in the pockets of some U.S. iPhone buyers.
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Under the terms of the settlement, those buyers will be able to submit a claim for any iPhone 16 or certain iPhone 15 models purchased from June 10, 2024, to March 29, 2025. The payout is expected to be $25 per eligible device, though it could reach as high as $95 per device, depending on the number of submissions, according to the California-based Clarkson Law Firm, one of the firms spearheading the litigation.
You have three months to submit a claim, which has a deadline of December 21, 2026. Visit SmartphoneAISettlement.com to begin the claim process online. You must provide your current contact information as well as PIN and claim ID numbers (if you have them from a claims notice) or the serial numbers of the eligible iPhones. You can file claims as an individual or a business, and request payment via PayPal, Venmo, electronic money transfer or check.
If you’re not sure if you are eligible, call toll-free 888-988-8945 or write to:
Landsheft, et al, v. Apple Inc.
Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 301132
Los Angeles, CA 90030-1132
You can write to the same address if you have additional questions.
In a statement shared with AARP, Clarkson managing partner Ryan J. Clarkson says, “False advertising settlements aim to raise the floor of truth-telling, protect fair competition and increase consumer choice. The $250 million settlement fund represents the largest advertising settlement in history, and we are proud to have achieved this result for Apple customers."
Apple has lagged rivals such as Google and OpenAI in artificial intelligence, critics say. Its version of AI, called Apple Intelligence, was supposed to bolster and give new capabilities to Siri, Apple’s longtime voice-activated digital assistant. As part of the recently released iOS 27 software update for iPhones, Apple unveiled an improved, albeit still in beta, version called Siri AI.
In court documents, the plaintiffs argued that “Apple falsely represented what the iPhone 16 could do, in an effort to reverse its trend of declining iPhone sales and capitalize on consumer excitement for truly innovative and advanced AI features. Apple promoted AI capabilities that did not exist at the time, do not exist now, and will not exist for two or more years, if ever, all while marketing them as the breakthrough innovation of the iPhone 16.”
The suit pointed to TV and social media commercials featuring Game of Thrones and The Last of Us actor Bella Ramsey that showcased Siri’s AI capabilities, thereby amplifying the “consumer belief that Enhanced Siri was real, available, and revolutionary.”
Though it agreed to the settlement, Apple denied any wrongdoing.
At the time the settlement was reached, Apple issued its own statement: “Since the launch of Apple Intelligence, we have introduced dozens of features across many languages that are integrated across Apple’s platforms, relevant to what users do every day and built with privacy protections at every step. These include Visual Intelligence, Live Translation, Writing Tools, Genmoji, Clean Up and many more. Apple has reached a settlement to resolve claims related to the availability of two additional features. We resolved this matter to stay focused on what we do best, delivering the most innovative products and services to our users.”
This is not the first Siri-related class action Apple has been embroiled in. Last year, Apple device owners were able to claim a piece of a $95 million privacy settlement as restitution over allegations that Siri recorded private and confidential conversations without a user’s consent. Apple denied wrongdoing in that case too.
Class actions are legal procedures that allow one or a small number of plaintiffs to pursue a case on behalf of a larger group or class of people. Attorney fees reduce the overall settlement amount. While many are legitimate, some class action settlement notifications are fronts for scams and fraud.
This story, originally published May 6, 2026, has been updated with information about how to submit a claim.
The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.
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