The legal battle between Elon Musk and OpenAI, along with CEO Sam Altman, has come to an end. Musk’s lawsuit, which targeted the AI firm’s collaboration with Microsoft and its shift towards profit-making ventures after his departure from the board, has been dropped.
Musk’s decision to dismiss the lawsuit “without prejudice” suggests that a settlement was not reached, leaving room for potential future actions. The lawsuit, filed in March, contested OpenAI’s move away from its original mission of developing AI for the greater good towards a focus on corporate gains.
In 2015, Musk played a pivotal role in founding OpenAI, alongside Altman and Greg Brockman, with a commitment to non-profit endeavors. However, his departure from the board in 2017 preceded OpenAI’s launch of a for-profit arm, prompting Musk’s legal action. The lawsuit particularly targeted OpenAI’s collaboration with Microsoft.
According to Musk, OpenAI’s decision to embrace a closer relationship with Microsoft contradicted the founding agreement, which aimed to keep the AI code open for public use rather than for exclusive corporate interests. He accused OpenAI and its top executives of deviating from the company’s original mission.
In a related development, Musk, who is also developing a competitor to ChatGPT, announced his intention to prohibit Apple devices from his companies if OpenAI’s AI software becomes integrated into Apple’s operating system.
