Sam Altman · Microsoft · OpenAI · Google · SpaceX · Tesla · CNBC Technology
How Elon Musk and Sam Altman went from besties to bitter rivals
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In December 2015, Elon Musk and Sam Altman sat together at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit in San Francisco for an interview, publicly touting their new partnership as co-chairs of a fledgling artificial intelligence research lab.
Key facts
- In January 2023, Microsoft pumped $10 billion into OpenAI, making clear that the race to commercialization was underway
- OpenAI launched in December 2015, with Musk committing to fund the charity with up to $1 billion
- By August 2017, its systems were able to beat the world's top players of Dota 2, a multi-player action game
- The partnership began 11 years ago, in May 2015, when Altman emailed Musk asking if he thought it would be a good idea for Y Combinator to start a "Manhattan Project for AI." Musk said the idea
Summary
Musk was a multibillionaire due to his stake in Tesla, which had gone public five years earlier, and Altman was running famed startup incubator Y Combinator. Over the past three weeks, the collapse of the once-tight bond between two of the most prominent names in AI has been the subject of a high-profile trial in Oakland, California, after Musk sued Altman and OpenAI in 2024 for allegedly violating their commitment to keep OpenAI as a nonprofit. Both companies are racing for the public market, with SpaceX expected to disclose its prospectus as soon as this week, ahead of what could be a record offering next month.