Elon Musk withdrew his lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman. Musk claimed that the company violated its mission to use AI technology for the benefit of humanity. The lawsuit was dismissed without prejudice, meaning Musk can re-file his lawsuit, CNBC reported.
The lawsuit, which Musk filed in the US California state court in February, was withdrawn one day before the hearing that will examine OpenAI's request to dismiss the case. It also came a day after Musk threatened to ban Apple devices from his companies. Musk stated that he would realize this threat if Apple integrated OpenAI technology into its iPhone and Mac devices at the OS level.
The lawsuit alleged that OpenAI violated an agreement with Musk and other founding members. This agreement committed to making OpenAI a nonprofit and keeping its technology open source. However, The Verge's Nilay Patel noted that there are some problems with Musk's case.
According to Patel, Musk was claiming a breach of contract that did not actually exist. The petition referred to the “Foundation Agreement”, but such an agreement was not added to the case file. The alleged breach acknowledged that the “Foundation Agreement” was merely a specific sentiment captured in some emails.
OpenAI soon denied Musk's claims, saying the billionaire wanted “absolute control” by merging the company with Tesla. Additionally, the company stated that there was “no agreement” with Musk. These statements were important points that questioned the validity of the case.
Last year, Musk founded his own AI company, xAI, which created the Grok AI chatbot that comes with the X Premium subscription. The startup has raised $6 billion from investors for expensive chips that will power its AI system. Last week, CNBC reported on emails suggesting Musk had sent thousands of Nvidia H100 AI chips destined for Tesla to X.
These developments underline Musk's ambitions and strategies in the field of AI. His disputes with OpenAI and the rise of his own company xAI show how intense the competition in technological innovation is. These moves by Musk will contribute to shaping the future direction of AI technology.