Elon Musk asks US court to block OpenAi’s for-profit conversion

WASHINGTON, Dec 1, 2024 (AFP) – Elon Musk has again asked a US court to stop ChatGPT-maker OpenAI from converting into a for-profit enterprise, CNBC reported Saturday. Attorneys representing the billionaire and his AI startup, xAI, filed the injunction Friday, the financial news site reported.

The injunction also requests that OpenAI be stopped from allegedly barring its investors from funding competing companies. The move is the latest development in a business feud between OpenAI and Musk, who co-founded the group in 2015 but has since left.

OpenAI has seen its profile skyrocket over recent years as it has become a star player in the growing field of artificial intelligence. Musk has alleged that OpenAI bars its investors from making investments in rivals — which would put his own startup at a disadvantage in a sector where billions of dollars are at stake.

OpenAI was founded as a non-profit and has since switched to a “capped” for-profit enterprise. It is currently seeking to become a for-profit public benefit corporation, which could attract more investment. After leaving in 2018, Musk said he was uncomfortable with the profit-driven direction the company was taking under the stewardship of CEO Sam Altman.

He filed a lawsuit against the company in March, accusing it of breaking its original non-profit mission to make AI research available to all. OpenAI argues that Musk’s lawsuit, as well as his embrace of open source development for AI, is little more than a case of sour grapes after leaving the company.