Elon Musk says will drop lawsuit if OpenAI changes name to ClosedAI

Elon Musk has proposed a ceasefire in the legal battle between his companies and OpenAI, the creators of ChatGPT. Musk, the CEO of both Tesla and SpaceX, declared that he would drop the lawsuit against OpenAI if they agree to a significant alteration: a name change to 'ClosedAI'.

The dispute ignited when Musk, renowned for his ambitious ventures in the tech industry, filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman. Musk alleged that they violated their original contractual agreements concerning artificial intelligence (AI) developments.

OpenAI swiftly retaliated against Musk's accusations, asserting that discussions regarding a shift towards a for-profit structure were at the heart of the conflict. According to OpenAI, Musk had proposed merging with Tesla or obtaining full control over the company, demands which the organisation deemed incompatible with its mission.

"We're revealing the realities of our association with Elon Musk, and we plan to refute all of his assertions," OpenAI stated on their official platform, X. In response, Musk issued a direct challenge: "Change your name to ClosedAI, and I will withdraw the lawsuit."

Musk further criticised OpenAI, asserting that the organisation needed to abandon what he termed "a facade". This remark came in response to a post on 'X', indicating the escalating tension between the parties involved.

In their latest communication, OpenAI disclosed that Musk had pushed for conditions including majority equity, initial board control, and the role of CEO. However, negotiations faltered when Musk allegedly withheld funding, prompting OpenAI to reject his terms.

The co-founders of OpenAI, including Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever, John Schulman, Sam Altman, and Wojciech Zaremba, maintained that they could not endorse an agreement granting absolute control to an individual, deeming it contrary to their organisational ethos.

Musk subsequently parted ways with OpenAI, citing the necessity for a formidable competitor to Google/DeepMind and expressing his intention to undertake the challenge independently. Despite his departure, Musk assured his support for OpenAI's pursuit of an alternative path forward.