Elon Musk has been at odds with European regulators for years. On Oct. 20, he offered them some thanks.
In a post on X, the head of Tesla, SpaceX and X gave the European Union credit for its USB-C mandate. The rule sets a common charging standard, and it’s why Apple eventually removed its own Lightning connector from the iPhone.
“Have to give the EU regulators credit where it’s due for making all Apple products use USB-C,” Musk said in the post.
Brussels gets a surprise supporter
The post went past 7.5 million views on X. Its author drew much of that attention, since Musk has repeatedly fought the EU over its rules for big tech companies.
His latest dispute with the bloc ended in a penalty. The European Commission fined X 120 million euros in December 2025 for violating the transparency rules in the Digital Services Act.
Musk hasn’t warmed to Brussels overall. On this single regulation, he clearly believes European intervention turned out well for consumers.
What the directive requires
EU lawmakers approved the directive in 2022. Under it, new smartphones, tablets, headphones, keyboards, mice and some other kinds of electronics sold in the EU must support USB-C charging.
The requirements came into force on Dec. 28, 2024, and laptops joined the list on April 28, 2026.
Apple faced the biggest adjustment
Apple was affected more than any other company. The iPhone used Apple’s proprietary Lightning port for more than a decade, which meant every iPhone owner had at least one cable that fit nothing else.
Apple moved away from Lightning with the iPhone 15 series in 2023. One cable now charges an Android phone, an iPhone, an iPad, a MacBook and plenty of accessories.
Musk gave credit for that shared cable to the same regulator that had fined his company 120 million euros less than a year before.