OpenAI fires back at Elon Musk’s lawsuit, reveals he wanted ‘full control’ of company

In a blog post, OpenAI has attached emails that reveal that Musk wanted to turn the AI research company into a cash cow for Tesla.

The lawsuit caps years of Musk's vocal criticism of OpenAI's shift from open source mission to closed, profit-driven model. (Image: Reuters)

If you’ve been following the drama in the world of AI, you know that OpenAI and Elon Musk are going through some issues. The startup that Musk co-founded is firing back after the billionaire sued them last week for allegedly abandoning their original mission.

In a blog post, OpenAI has attached emails that reveal that Musk wanted to turn the AI research company into a cash cow for Tesla. They say Musk pushed for OpenAI to merge with his car company, even forwarding an email suggesting they “attach to Tesla” for funding.

According to OpenAI, the disagreement started back in 2017 when they decided to create a for-profit arm to raise money to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI) – the holy grail of making machines as smart as humans. In the blog post, OpenAI stated that back in 2017, AGI would have required far more resources than initially calculated.

“We all understood we were going to need a lot more capital to succeed at our mission—billions of dollars per year, which was far more than any of us, especially Elon, thought we’d be able to raise as the non-profit,” the blog adds.

But as the board discussed the company’s future, Musk wanted majority ownership, board control, and to be appointed CEO, the blog states.

However, OpenAI felt having any single person in total command went against their core principles. So they parted ways with Musk on the for-profit restructuring, eventually leading to the bad blood.

In his lawsuit, Musk claims the three OpenAI founders originally agreed to work on beneficial AGI for humanity. However, the company betrayed the original mission a few years down the line.

Story continues below this ad

OpenAI didn’t mince words in their response, saying they’re “sad” it’s come to this with someone they “deeply admired” at first. They admit Musk inspired them to dream big, only to later doubt them, start a rival company (xAI), and then sue when OpenAI started making real progress without him.

This development comes a couple of days after OpenAI and over 30 other tech giants signed a pledge to develop AI responsibly and mitigate risks to society. Salesforce, Anthropic, and even Musk’s Twitter were among the signatories to this well-timed letter reiterating AI’s “collective responsibility.”