In a surprising turn of events, it seems that Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has rejected a substantial $97.4 billion bid from Elon Musk to buy out the artificial intelligence firm. The proposal was reportedly submitted by a group of investors led by Musk to OpenAI’s board of directors. In response to this, Altman is claimed to have refused the offer and suggested that they would buy Twitter for $9.74 billion instead.
It is important to note that both Altman and Musk were co-founders of OpenAI when it was first launched in 2015 with a nonprofit structure. However, conflicts arose between the two over the direction of the AI venture. Altman expressed a desire to transition the company into a for-profit entity, a move Musk strongly disagreed with.
This disagreement led to legal action last year when Musk sued OpenAI and Altman for allegedly violating their pledge to operate the organization as a nonprofit. Musk eventually dropped the lawsuit after OpenAI published a series of Musk’s emails showing his early acknowledgement of the company’s need to generate profit.
Musk, in a statement relayed by his lawyer, insisted on restoring OpenAI as the transparent, safety-oriented force it once was, vowing to make that a reality.
The $97.4 billion bid for OpenAI, which was declined by Altman, was reportedly supported by Musk’s AI company xAI and numerous venture capital and investment firms.
In 2019, OpenAI, Inc. spun off a for-profit subsidiary, OpenAI Global, LLC. Since this spinoff and Musk’s departure, Altman has led OpenAI to receive funding from significant tech developers such as Microsoft to support its technological ambitions. Successful funding endeavors include a $500 billion private-led AI infrastructure investment initiative known as “Stargate.”
OpenAI was recently valued at $157 billion following a $6.6 billion funding round in October. Reports suggest that Softbank is nearing a $40 billion deal with OpenAI, which would increase the company’s valuation to a whopping $260 billion.