Elon Musk recently voiced sharp criticism of OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company he helped start, saying it has become an $800 billion closed-source enterprise, which is far from the nonprofit vision he supported. This came during an interview with The Economist ahead of OpenAI’s recent announcement about a misbehaving AI model.
Back when OpenAI was founded in 2015, Musk was one of the key backers, contributing under $45 million and seeing the organization as a counterweight to tech giants like Google. But the company’s transformation over the years has left him deeply disappointed. What began as an open-source nonprofit aiming to share AI technology with the world is now a highly valued for-profit entity with a valuation exceeding $850 billion.
In October 2025, OpenAI restructured itself into a public benefit corporation with a for-profit arm, drawing a significant investment from Microsoft, which now owns 27% of the company. This move signaled a major departure from its original mission, prompting Musk to sue OpenAI, accusing it of betraying the ideals he believed in.
Musk also pointed to Anthropic, an AI firm created by former OpenAI employees, as proof of deeper mistrust within the company. He said the Anthropic team left because they didn’t trust OpenAI’s current CEO, Sam Altman. Musk described Dario Amodei, Anthropic’s CEO, as a principled leader who hasn’t triggered any of his suspicions.
Despite his criticisms, Musk suggested that cooperation between OpenAI and its rivals on AI safety remains possible. He emphasized the importance of putting personal differences aside for the global good, especially as OpenAI recently gained US approval to roll out its GPT-5.6 model and seeks to expand its advertiser base.
OpenAI’s rise to immense value and closed-source status contrasts sharply with the ideals Musk invested in, highlighting tensions around the future direction of AI development. The full interview with Musk will be available on economist.com.
