OpenAI has launched an initiative to develop a social media platform akin to X (formerly Twitter). This move is likely to escalate tensions between Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, and Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who are already embroiled in a legal dispute.
According to reports from CNBC and other media outlets on Wednesday, OpenAI is in the process of creating a social media platform that could rival Musk’s X and Meta’s Instagram.
The development of OpenAI’s social media platform is still in its early phases. It’s anticipated to leverage ChatGPT’s image generation capabilities.
OpenAI has yet to decide whether to launch the social media platform as a standalone application or integrate it into ChatGPT.
If OpenAI introduces its own social media platform, it will inevitably face competition from X and Meta. Some analysts suggest that this development may be specifically targeting Musk.
Altman and Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015 as a nonprofit organization. However, disagreements over operational strategies led to Musk’s resignation from the board and divestment of his shares in February 2018. Musk subsequently established xAI in July 2023.
Musk has criticized OpenAI for deviating from its original nonprofit mission and transitioning into a for-profit entity. He filed a lawsuit alleging that OpenAI violated its founding principles by accepting a $13 billion investment from Microsoft.
OpenAI countered with its own legal action. Earlier in April, the company filed a lawsuit against Musk, accusing him of attempting to undermine the organization and seeking to halt what they term his malicious activities.
Musk and Altman also clashed following the Trump administration’s announcement of Stargate, an AI infrastructure expansion project. Upon learning that OpenAI, SoftBank Group, and Oracle Corporation were spearheading the project, Musk claimed that they actually have no money. Altman promptly refuted this statement.
In February, Musk proposed to acquire the nonprofit entity controlling OpenAI for $97.4 billion. Altman countered by offering to purchase Twitter (X) for $9.74 billion, effectively valuing X at one-tenth of OpenAI’s price and maintaining his offensive against Musk.