Musk’s Proposal and Altman’s Witty Response
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has made a substantial offer to acquire artificial intelligence powerhouse OpenAI for $9.74 billion (approximately Rs 84,600 crore). Musk’s AI venture, xAI, alongside investors such as Valor Equity Partners and Baron Capital, extended the proposal to OpenAI’s board. However, CEO, Sam Altman, swiftly declined the bid.
Altman responded with a sharp remark, stating, “No, thank you. But if you want to sell Twitter (now X) for $9.74 billion, let me know.” In response, Musk took a dig at Altman, referring to him as “Scam Altman.”
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, Musk’s legal representative, Mark Toberoff, formally presented the offer on Monday. The rejection highlights the ongoing tension between Musk and Altmen’s company, the company he once helped establish.
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Musk and Altman’s Shared History at OpenAI
OpenAI was officially launched on December 11, 2015, as a collaborative effort by leading AI researchers and tech entrepreneurs, including Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever, Wojciech Zaremba, and John Schulman.
Originally established as a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity, AI company later transitioned into a “capped-profit” model. Under this structure, investors can earn only limited returns, a shift that has sparked debates in the tech industry.
OpenAI’s Soaring Valuation and Funding Milestones
In 2024, this company secured an impressive Rs 57,167 crore in funding, propelling the company’s valuation to a staggering Rs 13.60 lakh crore. The AI firm continues to dominate the industry, positioning itself as a leader in generative artificial intelligence research and applications.
Despite Musk’s previous involvement in AI company, he has been vocal about his concerns regarding the company’s trajectory. He has repeatedly called for OpenAI to return to its open-source roots and prioritize safety in AI development.
Groundbreaking Innovations by the company
OpenAI has revolutionized the AI landscape with several pioneering products.
- GPT-3 (2020): This language model demonstrated human-like text generation capabilities, reshaping natural language processing applications.
- DALL-E (2021): A generative AI tool designed to create images from textual descriptions, expanding the possibilities of AI-powered creativity.
- ChatGPT (2022): company’s most renowned product, ChatGPT, was launched in November 2022. It quickly became the world’s fastest-growing AI chatbot, reaching over one million users within just five days of its release.
With continuous advancements, OpenAI remains at the forefront of artificial intelligence, despite Musk’s attempts to reassert influence over the company.
What Lies Ahead for OpenAI and Musk?
Musk’s latest bid underscores his ongoing interest in the AI sector. His company, xAI, is emerging as a competitor, with ambitions to challenge OpenAI’s dominance. However, with OpenAI maintaining its independence and expanding its influence, Musk may need to explore alternative strategies to achieve his vision of AI-driven innovation.
