Elon Musk tried to hire OpenAI founders to start AI unit inside Tesla
Musk was “prepared to do the for-profit, provided he would get control.”
TL;DR
- Elon Musk attempted to recruit OpenAI's founding team, including Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and Ilya Sutskever, to establish an AI lab at Tesla in 2018.
- Musk's proposals included making Altman a board member or turning OpenAI into a Tesla subsidiary.
- Evidence presented in court suggests Musk was willing to accept a for-profit structure for OpenAI, provided he maintained control.
- OpenAI's founders rejected Musk's proposals, citing concerns about his understanding of AI/AGI and his desire for unilateral control.
- Musk left OpenAI's board in early 2018, and the company subsequently restructured as a for-profit entity.
- Musk is now suing OpenAI, alleging that Altman, Brockman, and the company unjustly enriched themselves by converting the startup to a for-profit model.