OpenAI CEO Sam Altman countersuing Elon Musk, alleges repeated harassment

• OpenAI has announced a counter-lawsuit against Elon Musk, accusing him of repeated harassment and requesting a judge stop him from any “further unlawful and unfair action.” Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman are already engaged in another court case.
• The move comes after Musk attempted to stop OpenAI from changing into a for-profit business.
• Musk and Altman cofounded OpenAI in 2015, but Musk left the company before it became an AI powerhouse.

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OpenAI is countersuing Elon Musk.

In an announcement on Wednesday, April 9, the company accused Musk of continued harassment and called for a judge to block Musk from any “further unlawful and unfair action” against Open AI in a court case over the future business structure of a company that has spearheaded the advancement of artificial intelligence.

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What is Musk and Altman’s history?

Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman cofounded the tech firm in 2015.

However, Musk departed from the company before it became the technological powerhouse it is today.

Musk has recently developed his own AI company, X.ai, and in 2023, attempted to stop OpenAI, which created ChatGPT, from changing to a for-profit business, which the company must do before the end of this year to be able to collect all $40 billion of its current fundraising round, according to Reuters.

What is OpenAI saying?

OpenAI wrote in its court filing, “Through press attacks, malicious campaigns broadcast to Musk’s more than 200 million followers on the social media platform he controls, a pretextual demand for corporate records, harassing legal claims and a sham bid for OpenAI’s assets, Musk has tried every tool available to harm OpenAI.”

Altman’s company requested that the judge prevent Musk from any further alleged harassment and that he be “held responsible for the damage he has already caused.”

How did Musk’s legal team respond?

Musk’s legal team responded by mentioning a $94.7 billion bid to take over OpenAI this year from a Musk-led group of investors, which Altman rejected.

Musk’s lawyer, Marc Toberoff, tells Reuters, “Had OpenAI’s board genuinely considered the bid as they were obligated to do, they would have seen how serious it was. It’s telling that having to pay fair market value for OpenAI’s assets allegedly ‘interferes’ with their business plans.”

“Elon’s nonstop action against us are just bad-faith tactics to slow down OpenAI and seize control of leading AI innovations for his personal benefit,” OpenAI said in a post on X.

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What is the bigger picture?

Altman’s latest legal filings come after Musk sued OpenAI and Altman in 2024, accusing the AI company of deviating from its core mission, which Musk says was for the benefit of humanity, not for corporate profit.

OpenAI and Altman deny Musk’s accusations and contend that Musk is trying to hinder his competitors’ progress in artificial intelligence.

Musk has not personally responded to the latest court filings.