Sam Altman Criticizes Elon Musk Over OpenAI Bid: 'Don't think he's a happy person'

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Sam Altman criticizes Elon Musk’s bid for OpenAI, citing Musk’s "insecurity" and stating, "I don’t think he’s a happy person."
• Musk offers $97.4 billion to acquire OpenAI, escalating tensions amid ongoing legal disputes and competition.
• Altman responds on social media, dismissing the offer and suggesting Musk is trying to "slow us down" instead of competing directly.
• OpenAI plans a fundraising round to potentially boost its valuation to $300 billion, following a board overhaul that includes Larry Summers and Adebayo Ogunlesi.

The feud between Elon Musk and Sam Altman intensifies as the OpenAI CEO criticizes Musk's "insecurity," claiming it played a role in his hostile bid for control of the AI company.

The growing clash between the tech billionaires continued as Altman reaffirmed, "OpenAI is not for sale. The OpenAI mission is not for sale."

In an interview, Altman said, "Probably, his whole life is from a position of insecurity, I feel for the guy," adding that he doesn't think Musk is a "happy person".

Musk's bid emerged amid his efforts to block OpenAI's shift from a non-profit to a for-profit organization, as part of a federal lawsuit against ChatGPT's creator, major investor Microsoft, and Sam Altman.

Altman and Musk co-founded OpenAI as a non-profit in 2015, but Musk left the company before it gained significant success and recognition in the market. A group of investors led by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk made a $97.4 billion offer on Monday to acquire the non-profit that controls OpenAI, escalating tensions in his ongoing feud with Altman.

However, the OpenAI CEO quickly responded and posted on social media, "No thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want." Speaking at the AI Action Summit in Paris, the ChatGPT maker’s top executive stated that Musk's offer appeared to be a move to gain a competitive edge, saying, "I think he's probably just trying to slow us down. He obviously is a competitor."

"I wish he would just compete by building a better product, but I think there's been a lot of tactics, many, many lawsuits, all sorts of other crazy stuff," Altman added.

Despite Altman's public rebuttal to Musk's bid, OpenAI's board will play a role in determining the seriousness of the offer. Larry Summers, a board director, told the media that he has not received "any formal communication" from Musk regarding the bid.

Musk's attorney noted that the offer was supported by his firm, xAI, and backed by several investors, including Valor Equity Partners, Baron Capital, Atreides Management, Vy Capital, Joe Lonsdale’s 8VC, and media executive Ari Emanuel through his investment fund.

Amidst this, OpenAI is working to secure a major fundraising round that could boost its post-money valuation to $300 billion. The company was valued at $157 billion in October of last year.

In the wake of the fallout between Altman and the OpenAI board, a complete board overhaul took place, adding former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and investment banker Adebayo Ogunlesi to the list of directors.