NEW YORK. Elon Musk has dropped his lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman, concluding a months-long legal battle between the co-founders of the artificial intelligence startup. Musk, who co-founded OpenAI in 2015, had sued the company in February, accusing it of deviating from its original nonprofit mission by reserving advanced AI technology for private customers.
The lawsuit sought a jury trial and demanded that OpenAI, Altman, and co-founder Greg Brockman return any profits earned from the business. However, OpenAI quickly countered Musk’s claims, labeling them “incoherent” and “frivolous,” and urged the court to dismiss the case. In a blog post, OpenAI published several of Musk’s emails from the company’s early days, which appeared to show Musk acknowledging the necessity for significant funding to support its AI ambitions. This contrasted sharply with his lawsuit’s allegations that OpenAI was improperly pursuing profit.
Musk’s legal team did not provide a reason for the dismissal request in their Tuesday filing. A hearing on OpenAI’s motion to dismiss had been scheduled for Wednesday.
The decision to drop the lawsuit followed a series of critical posts by Musk on his social media platform, X, where he criticized OpenAI’s handling of user data after Apple announced a partnership to integrate ChatGPT with its digital assistant, Siri. Musk declared, “If Apple integrates OpenAI at the OS (operating system) level, then Apple devices will be banned at my companies. That is an unacceptable security violation.” Apple assured that user queries sent to ChatGPT would not be stored by OpenAI.
The Musk-OpenAI legal dispute underscored the diverging visions for the future of the AI industry. Musk accused OpenAI of racing to develop powerful “artificial general intelligence” technology to “maximize profits.” In contrast, OpenAI accused Musk of being envious of the company’s success since his departure in 2018, following an unsuccessful bid to have Tesla acquire the startup.
While OpenAI dismissed Musk’s claims as “fiction,” the company has faced its own challenges. Last year, a leadership crisis led to Altman’s temporary ouster amid board members’ concerns about AI risks. Microsoft, a major investor, intervened, and Altman was reinstated, signaling a win for those advocating the commercialization of AI technology.
More recently, several high-profile safety leaders left OpenAI, publicly criticizing the company for prioritizing product rollouts over safety. In response, OpenAI established a new committee to provide safety and security recommendations to its board.
This legal saga highlights the complex and often contentious dynamics within the rapidly evolving AI industry, as stakeholders navigate the balance between innovation, safety, and profit.
Gary P Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
