OpenAI Rejects Elon Musk's $97 Billion Takeover Bid
OpenAI Rejects Elon Musk's $97 Billion Takeover Bid.
A group of investors, spearheaded by Elon Musk, has proposed a takeover of OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, with a bid amounting to $97.4 billion.
Marc Toberoff, the attorney representing the billionaire, verified that the offer for "all assets" of the technology firm was presented to its board on Monday.
This proposal marks a new development in the ongoing conflict between Musk, the wealthiest individual globally and a close associate of former US President Donald Trump, and Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, regarding the future direction of the startup at the forefront of the artificial intelligence revolution.
In response to the bid, Altman posted on Musk's social media platform X, external: "no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want".
OpenAI is widely recognized for its role in popularizing artificial intelligence tools and catalyzing significant investment in the industry.
Musk and Altman established the organization in 2015 as a non-profit entity; however, their relationship has deteriorated since Musk's departure from the company in 2018.
Reports indicate that Altman is in the process of transforming the organization into a for-profit entity, dissolving its non-profit board. Musk contends that this shift signifies a departure from the company's original mission of advancing AI for the benefit of humanity.
Conversely, OpenAI maintains that this transition to a for-profit model is essential for obtaining the necessary funding to develop superior artificial intelligence systems.
Musk's AI venture, xAI, along with several private equity firms, including Baron Capital Group and Valor Management, is supporting the effort to take control of OpenAI.
"It's time for OpenAI to return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was. We will make sure that happens," Musk said in a statement.
Christie Pitts, a technology investor in emerging enterprises at Panasonic Well in San Francisco, voiced doubts regarding the validity of that explanation for Musk's bid.
"I think it's fair to be pretty suspicious of this considering that he has a competitor himself... which is structured as a for-profit company, so I think there's more than meets the eye here," she told the BBC.
In a statement, Mr Toberoff said the consortium would be "prepared to consider matching or exceeding" any potential higher bid.
"As the co-founder of OpenAI and the most innovative and successful tech industry leader in history, Musk is the person best positioned to protect and grow OpenAI's technology," Musk's attorney added on his behalf and other investors.
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The developer of ChatGPT is collaborating with another prominent American technology company, Oracle, alongside a Japanese investment firm and an Emirati sovereign wealth fund, to establish $500 billion worth of artificial intelligence infrastructure in the United States.
This initiative, named The Stargate Project, was unveiled at the White House by President Donald Trump, who described it as "the largest AI infrastructure project in history" and emphasized its role in ensuring that "the future of technology" remains within the United States.
Although Musk serves as a key advisor to Trump, he has expressed skepticism regarding the venture's financial commitments, asserting that it does not "actually have the money" it has promised to invest, yet he has not offered any specific evidence or details to support his claims.
Elon Musk’s bid to take over OpenAI appears less about safeguarding AI for humanity and more about consolidating power in his own hands. His track record of erratic leadership, broken promises, and self-serving business decisions raises doubts about his true intentions. While he claims to want OpenAI to return to its original mission, his own AI company, xAI, operates for profit, exposing his hypocrisy.
His history of conflicts, including those with Twitter (now X), suggests he is more interested in controlling narratives than fostering innovation. OpenAI’s rejection signals a resistance to Musk’s increasingly aggressive and self-interested corporate maneuvers.
