Elon Musk's Takeover Bid Rejected by OpenAI

OpenAI's board has unanimously rejected a $97.4 billion takeover offer from Elon Musk, citing it as against the nonprofit's mission. Musk has sued, alleging a betrayal of founding aims, while attempting to acquire OpenAI's controlling stake through his AI startup, xAI. Legal battles continue.

In a significant development, OpenAI's board of directors has unanimously turned down a $97.4 billion takeover bid made by tech mogul Elon Musk. The announcement came through a statement on Friday by board chair Bret Taylor, emphasizing that OpenAI is not for sale.

Legal correspondence revealed that Musk, an initial investor in OpenAI, launched a legal campaign nearly a year ago against the AI pioneer, accusing it of veering away from its founding nonprofit objectives. Despite these legal wranglings, which remain unresolved, Musk presented a bid in conjunction with his AI startup, xAI, and investment partners to acquire the controlling interest.

The proposal, however, added new conditions this week, leading OpenAI's legal representative, William Savitt, to claim that Musk's much-publicized bid is not genuine. Concurrently, Musk has amplified his lawsuit, alleging non-compliance with his original contributions and bringing in additional defendants like Microsoft to the fray. A judicial decision remains pending as OpenAI's commercial transformation faces scrutiny.