Elon Musk vs. OpenAI and Microsoft: Lawsuit over Competitive Distortion

Elon Musk's lawyers have filed a preliminary injunction against OpenAI and its co-founders, as well as the major investor Microsoft. The aim is to prohibit OpenAI and other defendants from allegedly anti-competitive behavior. The application, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, targets OpenAI, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, Reid Hoffman, as well as former OpenAI board members and Microsoft executives. The complaint describes various unfair activities that need to be stopped to prevent irreparable harm. Musk's representatives argue that an injunction is necessary to preserve OpenAI's original non-profit nature. Initially, Musk withdrew the lawsuit in July due to an alleged deviation from this alignment, but resumed it in late summer and expanded it to include new defendants and plaintiffs in November. The allegations are based on the assumption that Musk was defrauded of more than 44 million dollars—a sum he invested in the OpenAI project. This was based on his well-known concerns about the potential dangers of artificial intelligence. Musk, one of the co-founders of OpenAI, left the company in 2018 due to differences regarding its future direction. In the application for the preliminary injunction, Musk's lawyers accuse OpenAI of significantly disadvantaging xAI through investment restrictions. An October report by the Financial Times supports these allegations, describing that OpenAI required its investors in the latest funding cycle not to support competitors like xAI.