Elon Musk Renews Legal Battle Against OpenAI CEO Sam Altman: Why?

Elon Musk has initiated another legal battle against OpenAI and its co-founders, Sam Altman and Greg Brockman.

Filed on Monday, Aug. 5, Musk's lawsuit claims that the executives "deceived" him into co-founding the company by exploiting his concerns about the existential risks posed by AI.

Musk's lawyers describe this as a "textbook tale of altruism versus greed," South China Morning Post wrote in its report.

Claims of Manipulation and Betrayal

Musk's legal team argues that Altman and Brockman "assiduously manipulated" him into supporting the creation of OpenAI. The company was originally established as a non-profit focused on building AI safely for the benefit of humanity. However, Musk's lawyers contend that this promise was merely "hot-air philanthropy," used to ensnare Musk into the venture.

After lending his name, investing significant time and tens of millions of dollars, and recruiting top AI scientists for OpenAI, Musk believes that he and the non-profit's mission were ultimately betrayed by Altman and Brockman. The lawsuit paints this alleged betrayal as being of "Shakespearean proportions."

Shift to a For-Profit Model

The lawsuit also reveals that Musk was informed OpenAI would hire leading scientists to compete with Google's DeepMind in the race to develop artificial general intelligence (AGI). However, Musk's lawyers argue that OpenAI shifted towards a for-profit model as it neared the creation of AGI, per Reuters.

Originally founded in December 2015 as a non-profit research lab, OpenAI transitioned to a "capped-profit" company in 2019. This change saw the creation of OpenAI LP, a hybrid between a for-profit and non-profit organization.

At the time, OpenAI claimed that this structure would allow investors and employees to receive a "capped return" if the company successfully achieved its mission.

Accusations of Self-Enrichment

Musk's lawyers describe the shift to a hybrid structure as a move to "a vehicle for Altman and his partners' self-enrichment," citing its partnership with Microsoft as evidence. They argue that this transition was a betrayal of the original non-profit mission that Musk had supported.

In 2023, Musk established his own AI firm, xAI, with the mission to "advance our collective understanding of the universe." This move came after Musk's departure from OpenAI in 2018, although he continued to contribute to the organization until mid-September 2020.

Previous Legal Actions

Musk initially sued OpenAI, Altman, and Brockman in March, accusing them of compromising the company's non-profit mission through their partnership with Microsoft.

OpenAI responded by calling the lawsuit "incoherent" and "contradictory," and published emails between its executives and Musk to counter his claims.

Musk dropped his first lawsuit against OpenAI, Altman, and Brockman in June, just a day before a judge was set to consider the case's future. Despite this, Musk has now resumed his legal efforts, continuing to challenge the integrity and direction of OpenAI.

Even OpenAI's new AI model did not escape Musk's eyes. According to the billionaire, it made him cringe after seeing it in an event.

As of now, OpenAI, Altman, and Brockman have not responded to requests for comment from Business Insider, which were sent outside of normal working hours. The outcome of Musk's new lawsuit remains to be seen, as the tech industry watches closely.