Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur and co-founder of OpenAI, has made an unsolicited $97.4 billion bid to acquire the artificial intelligence company, citing concerns over its deviation from its original mission of developing AI for the benefit of humanity. However, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman swiftly rejected the offer, sarcastically suggesting that Musk sell his social media platform, X, for $9.74 billion instead. This latest clash between the two tech moguls further escalates their long-running feud over the future direction of artificial intelligence.

According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Musk presented his bid to OpenAI’s board on February 10, 2025, emphasizing the need to return the company to its foundational principles. OpenAI, initially established as a non-profit, transitioned into a capped-profit structure in 2019, allowing it to accept major investments while maintaining a research-driven focus. However, Musk has criticized this shift, arguing that it prioritizes commercialization over ethical AI development.

“It’s time for OpenAI to return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was,” Musk stated, as per a statement from his attorney, Marc Toberoff. The billionaire has been an outspoken critic of OpenAI’s close partnership with Microsoft, which has significantly influenced the company’s strategic direction.

OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, dismissed Musk’s bid almost immediately, reportedly mocking the offer by suggesting Musk should instead sell X (formerly Twitter) for a fraction of the price. The exchange quickly became public, with Musk responding by calling Altman a “swindler” and labeling him “Scam Altman.”

Musk’s frustrations with OpenAI are longstanding. He co-founded the company in 2015, investing approximately $45 million in its early development. However, he left the board in 2018 following strategic disagreements with Altman and other executives. Since then, he has repeatedly accused OpenAI of drifting away from its mission of developing AI for humanity’s benefit.

Musk’s recent bid follows a lawsuit he filed against OpenAI in March 2024, alleging that the company had betrayed its founding mission by prioritizing profit. The lawsuit contended that OpenAI’s leadership had effectively transformed the organization into a profit-driven entity that primarily serves Microsoft’s interests rather than those of the public.

On February 10, Musk’s attorney reinforced these concerns, stating: “If Altman and OpenAI’s board are intent on becoming a fully for-profit corporation, it is vital that the charity be fairly compensated for what its leadership is taking away from it: control over the most transformative technology of our time.” This legal battle could have broader implications for AI regulation, corporate governance, and the ethical responsibilities of AI firms.

Musk’s concerns about OpenAI’s trajectory also stem from intensifying global competition in artificial intelligence. While OpenAI remains a leader in the field, it faces increasing rivalry from Chinese AI firms, particularly DeepSeek. The Hangzhou-based startup recently unveiled its open-source AI model, DeepSeek-R1, in January 2025. Reports suggest that DeepSeek-R1 rivals or even surpasses OpenAI’s models in key areas such as mathematical reasoning and code generation.

The competitive landscape in AI has driven governments and corporations worldwide to ramp up their investments in the sector. In January 2025, US President Donald Trump announced the Stargate project, an ambitious initiative aimed at bolstering America’s AI infrastructure. The project, a collaboration between OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank, plans to invest up to $500 billion over four years. Recent reports indicate that SoftBank is close to finalizing a $40 billion investment deal to advance the project.

While Musk has sought to regain influence over OpenAI, he has also been developing his own artificial intelligence enterprise, xAI. Founded in 2023, xAI launched Grok, a chatbot integrated into Musk’s social media platform, X. The chatbot was designed as a direct competitor to OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s DeepMind offerings. Musk has positioned xAI as a company committed to developing AI systems that prioritize truthfulness, transparency, and open-source methodologies.

Musk’s bid to acquire OpenAI could be seen as an attempt to consolidate his influence over the AI landscape, particularly as xAI seeks to challenge OpenAI’s dominance. However, Altman’s dismissive response suggests that OpenAI’s leadership has no interest in ceding control to Musk.

The rejection of Musk’s bid does not necessarily mark the end of his efforts to influence OpenAI. Given his history of high-stakes business maneuvers, Musk could pursue alternative strategies, including increasing his legal pressure on OpenAI, seeking regulatory intervention, or attempting a hostile takeover by rallying investors. However, OpenAI’s partnership with Microsoft-one of the world’s most powerful tech companies-makes such a move exceedingly difficult.

Meanwhile, the AI sector continues to evolve at a rapid pace. With Chinese firms gaining ground and national governments making AI a strategic priority, the battle for AI supremacy is far from over. OpenAI, Microsoft, xAI, Google, and Chinese competitors like DeepSeek are all racing to shape the future of artificial intelligence.

For Musk, the battle against OpenAI is both personal and strategic. As AI becomes increasingly integral to global economic and political power, his efforts to steer OpenAI back to what he perceives as its original mission are unlikely to wane. Whether he can succeed in this endeavor-or whether his feud with Altman will only grow more acrimonious-remains to be seen.

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