In a shocking move, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman rejects a $97.4 billion bid from Elon Musk’s consortium to acquire the company, sparking questions about Musk’s motives and the future of AI development.
The latest development in the ongoing battle between Elon Musk and OpenAI has come to a head as Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, has rejected a $97.4 billion bid from a consortium of investors led by Musk.
According to sources close to the matter, Musk’s attorney Marc Toberoff confirmed that the offer was submitted to OpenAI’s board on Monday for ‘all assets’ of the tech company. However, Altman took to social media platform X to respond with a simple yet firm rejection: ‘no thank you but we will buy Twitter for $9.74 billion_ if you want.’
While this rebuff does not necessarily mean that the proposed takeover is dead, OpenAI’s board will have the final say in determining the company’s future. It remains to be seen whether they will favor a sale, especially if the offer is increased.
However, there are also questions about how serious Musk is about actually acquiring the firm and whether the offer is part of the ongoing legal row between the two men. The relationship between Musk and Altman soured in 2018 when Musk departed OpenAI, which he co-founded with Altman as a non-profit company.
A History of Discord
The tension between Musk and Altman dates back to their departure from OpenAI in 2018. At the time, Musk argued that OpenAI had abandoned its founding mission of developing AI for the benefit of humanity by transitioning into a for-profit entity. However, OpenAI maintains that this transition is necessary to secure funding for developing the best artificial intelligence models.
Musk’s Motives Questioned
Tech investor Christie Pitts expressed skepticism about Musk’s motives, stating: ‘I think it’s fair to be pretty suspicious of this considering that he has a competitor himself… which is structured as a for-profit company, so I think there’s more than meets the eye here.’
The offer tabled at $97.4 billion is significantly lower than OpenAI’s valuation of $157 billion in its latest funding round last year. In fact, talks over a further funding round reportedly value it now at $300 billion.
OpenAI is a research organization focused on developing and promoting friendly AI that benefits humanity.
Founded in 2015 by Elon Musk, Sam Altman, and others, the company aims to advance artificial general intelligence (AGI) through large-scale machine learning models.
The mission of OpenAI is to ensure that AGI is developed in a way that aligns with human values and promotes positive outcomes for society.
OpenAI's research has led to the development of various AI technologies, including GPT-3, a highly advanced language model capable of generating human-like text.
A Higher Bid?
In response to the rejection, Musk’s attorney stated that the consortium would be ‘prepared to consider matching or exceeding’ any potential higher bid. The statement also highlighted Musk’s credentials as a co-founder of OpenAI and his role in protecting and growing its technology.
Meanwhile, Musk is teaming up with Oracle, a Japanese investment firm, and an Emirati sovereign wealth fund to build $500 billion of artificial intelligence infrastructure in the US through a new company called The Stargate Project.
Elon Musk is a South African-born entrepreneur, inventor, and business magnate.
He is best known for his ambitious projects in space exploration and electric cars.
Musk co-founded PayPal, which was later sold to eBay for $1.5 billion.
He then founded SpaceX, aiming to reduce space transportation costs and enable the colonization of Mars.
In 2008, he launched 'Tesla Motors' , which became a leading manufacturer of electric vehicles.
Musk has also founded The Boring Company, Neuralink, and SolarCity, among other ventures.
