Elon Musk attempted to bring OpenAI's founders into Tesla, aiming to launch an AI unit inside the automaker, according to court testimony. The revelations came Wednesday as a jury continues hearing Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman.
The testimony, delivered by former OpenAI board member and Neuralink executive Shivon Zilis, revealed that Musk pressed the founders to restructure OpenAI as a for-profit entity with him in control. Zilis told the court she contacted Tesla's team and proposed integrating OpenAI as a Tesla unit, but OpenAI's founders rejected the idea, questioning Musk's understanding of AI.
OpenAI's president Greg Brockman testified that Musk wanted "unilateral control over AGI," which the founders could not accept. Musk left OpenAI's board in early 2018, and the company later restructured as a for-profit with a charitable arm.
William Savitt, OpenAI's lead attorney, argued that Musk was "prepared to do the for-profit, provided he would get control," but when he couldn't, he "picked up his marbles and went home."
Musk is now suing OpenAI, claiming Altman, Brockman, and the company unjustly enriched themselves by converting the startup into a for-profit entity. OpenAI has since grown into an $852 billion behemoth, with aspirations for an IPO as early as this year.
Zilis also disclosed a personal relationship with Musk, revealing they had children together via IVF in 2020. In a 2020 text to Altman, Zilis warned him that Musk might "pull the 'you should have gone with Tesla' card."