According to ShibDaily, OpenAI has filed a countersuit against Elon Musk, the owner of X, intensifying a legal battle that began when Musk initiated litigation against the AI research group last week. The lawsuit, submitted on April 9 in the Northern District of California, accuses Musk of attempting to transform OpenAI into a public benefit corporation while maintaining its for-profit status. The filing also claims that Musk withdrew from OpenAI after the organization declined to merge with his company, Tesla. Furthermore, the lawsuit alleges that Musk did not fulfill his $1 billion funding commitment to OpenAI. Instead, following the launch of ChatGPT, Musk established his own AI company, xAI. The lawsuit states, "Musk could not tolerate seeing such success for an enterprise he had abandoned and declared doomed. He made it his project to take down OpenAI, and to build a direct competitor that would seize the technological lead—not for humanity but for Elon Musk." The filing further accuses Musk of using various tactics, including press attacks and legal claims, to harm OpenAI.
OpenAI announced its countersuit in a post on X, describing Musk's actions as "bad-faith tactics" aimed at undermining the organization and taking control of its AI advancements for personal gain. The organization has requested that the court prevent Musk from continuing his attacks and hold him accountable for the damage caused. A jury trial is scheduled for the spring of next year. According to Reuters, Musk's legal team referenced a previous $97.4 billion unsolicited acquisition offer led by Musk, which OpenAI declined. Musk's lawyer, Marc Toberoff, stated, "Had OpenAI’s Board genuinely considered the bid as they were obligated to do, they would have seen how serious it was. It’s telling that having to pay fair market value for OpenAI’s assets allegedly ‘interferes’ with their business plans." The ongoing legal dispute highlights the tensions between Musk and OpenAI, as both parties prepare for the upcoming trial.
