In 2018, well before taking over Twitter and definitely before the ChatGPT exploit, Elon Musk allegedly tried to buy OpenAI. This was revealed by a Semafor report taken up in these hours by The Verge.
According to the report, the Tesla CEO would have advanced the offer worried that OpenAI could suffer competition from Google. However Sam Altman – current CEO of the company – and the president Greg Brockman they would have rejected Musk’s proposal.
Elon Musk and OpenAI: a tense relationship
We recall that Musk was already part of a small group of entrepreneurs who in 2015 contributed to the foundation of the OpenAI project. However the tycoon you are resigned from the board of directors of the company in 2018due to the conflict of interest with his role at Tesla.
Semafor states that, after the resignation, Elon Musk also allegedly denied OpenAI a $100 million grant promised before his farewell. Failure to pay would have caused many problems for OpenAI, as the company was engaged in major investments for the development of GPT technologies.
Microsoft as third wheel
This hypothesis, which we recall derives from an unverified report, would justify the fact that OpenAI has accepted the economic support of Microsoft, which has offered billions of dollars to finance the company’s ascent. As part of the deal, Microsoft secured exclusive rights to OpenAi products, which it recently rolled out to Bing.
The Verge points out that since OpenAI partnered with Microsoft, the two companies have been launching AI products and services at an incredible pace. In addition to Bing, Microsoft has integrated OpenAI technology into the Office package. Just today OpenAI announced that it would massively expand the capabilities of ChatGPT, integrating a number of plugins.