Elon Musk and OpenAI: Tensions Over Passing Down to His Children

Sam Altman Defends OpenAI Against Musk's Accusations

Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has spoken out in response to accusations made by Elon Musk, a former co-founder of the organization. Musk criticized OpenAI's structure, claiming that the creation of a for-profit subsidiary has distorted the organization's original goal, which was to serve as a great charitable endeavor.

Altman reacted to these allegations by emphasizing that the foundation of OpenAI is one of the largest charitable works in the world. He defended the organization's mission despite criticisms regarding its transformation into a commercial entity. According to him, the foundation continues to do incredible work and still has much to offer.

The Issue of Control and Safety

A central point of the debate lies in the question of control over the organization. In 2017, Musk expressed concerns about the safety of the AI models developed by OpenAI. Altman revealed that Musk had even considered passing OpenAI on to his children in the event of his death, a proposal that raised concerns about the concentration of power.

Altman explained that this idea goes against OpenAI's mission, which aims to prevent advanced AI from falling under the control of a single individual. This vision was reinforced by Altman's experience at Y Combinator, where he observed that founders typically do not relinquish control.

Internal Tensions and Musk's Management

Musk's management methods have also been criticized by Altman, who stated that Musk's approaches, effective in other sectors, were not suitable for a research lab like OpenAI. Altman mentioned incidents where Musk requested rankings of researchers, which demotivated the team and harmed the organization's culture.

Altman also testified that Musk's management tactics, which might have worked for engineering and manufacturing, did not function at OpenAI. "I don't think Mr. Musk understands how to lead a good research lab," Altman said. "He had demotivated some of our key researchers. At one point, he demanded that Greg and Ilya compile a list of researchers, outline their achievements, rank them, and cut a number of them. This caused enormous damage to the organization's culture for a long time."

Indeed, Altman presented himself as the defender of the "sweat equity" of his co-founders Greg Brockman and Ilya Sutskever, the two individuals who were effectively running OpenAI at the time, while Musk and Altman had other jobs.

Investments and Restructuring

Musk's lawyers raised questions about OpenAI's commitment to safety as the organization restructured its assets, now valued at $200 billion. This restructuring, completed in 2025, allowed for the conversion of shares into cash.

In 2018, during a meeting with Microsoft for an investment, Altman noted a positive atmosphere, contrasting with the tense discussions with Musk. OpenAI's lawyers emphasized that Musk had been informed and invited to participate in the investments, which he now criticizes.

After this conflict remained unresolved, Musk ultimately left the board of OpenAI and began launching competing AI initiatives at Tesla and his own AI startup, xAI. However, Altman has kept in touch with the unpredictable businessman, keeping him informed about OpenAI's work and seeking his funding and advice.