Elon Musk tried to hire OpenAI founders to start AI unit inside Tesla

Elon Musk tried to bring OpenAI’s founding team to Tesla in 2018, proposing they head a new AI lab within the carmaker, court testimony revealed on Wednesday. Emails and messages showed Musk, an OpenAI co-founder, lost confidence in the non-profit’s ability to build artificial general intelligence (AGI) by late 2017. He offered Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and Ilya Sutskever roles at Tesla, including making Altman a board member or turning OpenAI into a Tesla subsidiary. The proposal was part of a broader struggle over control of OpenAI’s direction.

Shivon Zilis, an OpenAI adviser and Musk’s close associate, sketched out plans for a Tesla AI lab that would “rival the likes of Google / DeepMind and Facebook AI Research.” She laid out nine possible scenarios for achieving AGI, with most centered on Tesla—including poaching DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis. However, OpenAI’s executives were not persuaded. Zilis told Musk’s chief of staff in February 2018 that they “all think Elon is an incredible human being but that he really hasn’t done his homework AI/AGI and that really concerns them about working with him.”

After the founders declined, Musk left OpenAI’s board in early 2018. OpenAI subsequently restructured as a for-profit entity with a charitable arm, growing into an $852 billion behemoth. Musk is now suing Altman and Brockman, claiming they unjustly enriched themselves by converting the start-up. OpenAI’s lawyers argue Musk was “prepared to do the for-profit, provided he would get control.” The trial could reshape the fate of the ChatGPT maker, which has public listing aspirations.

The revelations highlight the deep rift between Musk and OpenAI’s leadership over AGI control. Zilis, who has four children with Musk, testified that her “allegiance is to the best outcome of AI for humanity.” The case continues to unfold in an Oakland courtroom, with Musk’s ambition to dominate AI development at the center of the dispute.