Ex-Apple leader says iPhone maker is in a 'battle for the soul' as it goes up against the DOJ

• A former Apple employee says the company is facing a "battle for the soul," per WSJ.
• His thoughts come as Apple faces a DOJ's anti-trust lawsuit and a nearly $2 billion EU fine. 
• He worked under ex-Apple exec Phil Schiller who has been a key defender of Apple's business tactics.

A former Apple employee said the iPhone maker's battle with the DOJ over anti-trust accusations threatens its core identity.

"This is a battle for the soul of Apple," Michael Gartenberg, once the senior director of the tech giant's worldwide product marketing team, told the Wall Street Journal. "Governments around the world are trying to take apart Apple's DNA strand by strand."

Gartenberg's comments come after the US Department of Justice sued Apple, accusing it of engaging in anti-competitive practices to crowd out the smartphone market.

The DOJ pointed to everything from janky iPhone-Android messaging to limited third-party smartwatch compatibility with the iPhone as evidence for the company's alleged misconduct. It's the latest addition to Apple's woes following a nearly $2 billion fine from the EU over its App Store policies and declining iPhone sales in China.

In a statement to Business Insider, Gartenberg said that Apple has always tried to present itself as a company that prioritizes customers, whereas the DOJ sees the company as putting shareholders first.

Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider before publication.

Before leaving the company, Gartenberg, according to the WSJ, worked under Phil Schiller — the ex-senior vice president of the worldwide marketing team who appears to have played a key role in defending Apple's perceived anti-competitive tactics.

In 2016, Schiller forwarded an email to CEO Tim Cook that "moving iMessage to Android will hurt us more than help us." The DOJ cited the exchange in its suit as evidence of illegal behavior.

Since stepping down from his executive role in 2020, Schiller, now an "Apple Fellow" who oversees the App Store, appears to keep defending Apple's business practices.

In 2021, Schiller was a key witness in Epic Games' antitrust lawsuit against Apple. The gaming company sued the iPhone maker, claiming it engaged in anticompetitive behavior and illegally maintained a monopoly through its App Store practices. For example, Apple barred games like Fortnite from being sold in third-party app marketplaces. In court, Schiller argued that barring apps from being available from outside marketplaces was primarily a security concern.

In late January, however, the company was forced to allow people access to rival app stores on the iPhone in Europe to comply with the Digital Markets Act, known as DMA.

In response, Schiller said in February that he still believes Apple needs to do whatever it takes to keep its products safe.

"I have no qualms in saying that our goal is going to always be to make the App Store the safest, best place for users to get apps," Schiller told Fast Company in February.

"I think users— and the whole developer ecosystem—have benefited from that work that we've done together with them," he added. "And we're going to keep doing that."