Sam Altman’s Response to Elon Musk’s Lawsuit: A Text Exchange Revealed

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently disclosed his immediate response to Elon Musk’s lawsuit against him during an interview with tech journalist Kara Swisher at City Arts & Lectures. Here’s a closer look at Altman’s text exchange with Musk and the ongoing legal battle between the two tech moguls.

The Text Exchange

Altman revealed that he sent a text to Musk right after learning about the lawsuit, describing it as “something trivial.” When pressed by Swisher if it was along the lines of “WTF?”, Altman clarified that it was a bit nicer but couldn’t recall the exact wording. The exchange also involved some emojis, indicating a relatively light-hearted interaction despite the legal tensions.

Background of the Lawsuit

Earlier this year, Musk filed a lawsuit against Altman and OpenAI, accusing them of breaching their founding agreement and jeopardizing the nonprofit mission of benefiting humanity through their partnership with Microsoft. Musk demanded OpenAI to make its research and technology open-source, cut off Microsoft from GPT-4, and prevent Altman and Microsoft from profiting from OpenAI.

History of Collaboration and Discord

Musk was a co-founder of OpenAI alongside Altman in 2015 but later stepped away from the company’s board due to conflicts of interest with his AI efforts at Tesla. Since then, Musk has publicly criticized Altman and OpenAI, even launching his own AI venture last year.

Altman has taken a more diplomatic approach, acknowledging Musk’s concerns about AI safety while wishing for greater recognition of OpenAI’s contributions. Despite expressing nostalgia for the “old Elon,” Altman’s company has robustly defended itself against Musk’s legal actions, denouncing the lawsuit as baseless and driven by jealousy.

Legal Response and Public Disclosure

In a recent legal filing, OpenAI’s lawyers rebuked Musk’s lawsuit as frivolous and incoherent, alleging that his actions stem from resentment over OpenAI’s achievements post his departure. Altman’s decision to disclose the text exchange and release conflicting emails to counter Musk’s public statements underscores the ongoing legal and public relations battle between the two entities.

The unfolding saga between Altman, OpenAI, and Musk sheds light on the complexities and tensions within the tech industry, particularly concerning AI development and intellectual property disputes.