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“Swindler”: Musk And Altman Throw Punches After Musk-Led Group Leads $97.4 Billion Bid For Control Of OpenAI | ZeroHedge

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Elon Musk is leading a group of investors in a $97.4 billion offer to purchase the nonprofit that controls OpenAI – the makers of ChatGPT, – and which Musk was an original investor in.

On Monday, Musk’s attorney Marc Toberoff said he submitted the bid to OpenAI’s board of directors in an unsolicited offer that could upend OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s plans to convert it into a for-profit company, as well as plans to spend up to $500 billion on AI infrastructure through the so-called ‘Stargate’ joint venture, reports.

“It’s time for OpenAI to return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was,” Musk said in a statement provided by Toberoff. “We will make sure that happens.”

The bid is being backed by xAI – Musk’s own artificial intelligence company, which could end up merging with OpenAI following a deal. Other investors in the potential deal include; Valor Equity Partners, Baron Capital, Atreides Management, Vy Capital and 8VC, a venture firm led by Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale. And who else? Ari Emanuel – CEO of Hollywood company Endeavor (and the brother of Democrat operative Rahm Emanuel) – who was portrayed in .

Altman responded to the offer with a “no thank you,” adding “but we will buy Twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.”

no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want

— Sam Altman (@sama) February 10, 2025

To which Musk replied…

Swindler

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 10, 2025

It’s not over…

Scam Altman

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 10, 2025

Musk has filed several legal complaints against OpenAI, accusing the company of betraying its original mission as a nonprofit by creating the for-profit arm, as well as colluding with Microsoft, its biggest investor, to dominate AI development.

What’s more, Toberoff says Musk and team is prepared to match or exceed any bids higher than their own.

“If Sam Altman and the present OpenAI Inc. Board of Directors 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,” he said.

A thought…

My understanding is that @elonmusk is not trying to buy the OpenAI nonprofit, per se, but rather the underlying for-profit assets that @sama must buy in order to reorg the company. So it’s partially a troll, and partially setting a price that may cause Sam to pay more than he…