Elon Musk has intensified his legal battle against OpenAI, the artificial intelligence firm he co-founded, by expanding his lawsuit to include Microsoft, OpenAI's largest financial backer. Filed in a federal court in Oakland, California, the revised complaint accuses both companies of illegally conspiring to dominate the market for generative AI and suppress competition.
Musk's attorneys argue that the companies' business practices, including exclusive licensing agreements, constitute anti-competitive behavior and violate antitrust laws.
The lawsuit asserts that OpenAI has strayed far from its nonprofit origins, accusing it of prioritising profit over public welfare in its race to advance AI technologies. Musk’s filing criticises the rapid transformation of OpenAI into a USD 157 billion enterprise, describing it as unprecedented and detrimental to market fairness. The legal team seeks to void OpenAI's license agreements with Microsoft and compel the companies to surrender profits allegedly obtained through what they call “ill-gotten gains.”
Musk's attorney, Marc Toberoff, stressed the need for greater transparency, stating, “Sunlight is the best disinfectant.” OpenAI has dismissed the allegations as unfounded and overreaching, while Microsoft has declined to comment. OpenAI has also accused Musk of using the lawsuit to undermine the company for his competitive advantage, calling it part of an “increasingly blusterous campaign to harass OpenAI.”
(Inputs from Reuters)
