OpenAI's Sam Altman Reportedly Developing Social Media Platform, Escalating Rivalry with Elon Musk

ChatGPT founder escalates Musk feud by launching X rival

The co-founder of ChatGPT is escalating his feud with Elon Musk by launching a new social media platform to rival X. Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, is said to be exploring plans for a new website based on its newly released AI image generator. The plans, which were first reported by The Verge, mark the latest twist in the spat between the OpenAI founder and Mr Musk. The pair co-founded OpenAI as a non-profit organisation in 2015, alongside funding from entrepreneur Peter Thiel and Amazon. However, the two Silicon Valley tycoons subsequently clashed over plans to turn the company into a commercial business and Mr Musk left following a power struggle in 2018. The Tesla founder sued OpenAI last year over claims his former partners betrayed him by turning the company into a for-profit enterprise, in what he branded a "deceit of Shakespearean proportions". OpenAI has since issued a counter-claim against Mr Musk after accusing the billionaire of harassment.

Sam Altman May Go After Bitter Rival Elon Musk With His Own Social Media Platform

There might be a new chapter in the long-running battle between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and X owner Elon Musk, who have often resorted to online attacks filled with mocking comments and insults. OpenAI is reportedly working to create a social media network that could go after X, which would certainly get under Mr. Musk's skin. An internal prototype is focused on ChatGPT's image generation, the Verge reported Tuesday, citing unnamed sources. The report claims Mr. Altman has been privately asking outsiders for feedback. Mr. Altman and Mr. Musk's bitter rivalry has gone on for years. Mr. Musk was a co-founder of OpenAI but left in 2018 after a bitter boardroom rivalry with Mr. Altman over who should run the company. He sued OpenAI and Mr. Altman last year claiming they had abandoned the company's original goal when a shift to a for-profit model was announced. The case is still awaiting trial. In January, the pair clashed over the Stargate artificial intelligence infrastructure project touted by President Trump. The $500 billion joint venture between OpenAI, Oracle, and SoftBank is building data centers and the electricity infrastructure needed for developing AI in Texas. Hours after Mr. Trump declared it "a resounding declaration of confidence in America's potential" Mr. Musk mocked it on X, "They don't actually have the money." In a series of attacks later in the day he called Altman "a swindler." Mr. Altman fired back the next day, saying Mr. Musk was "wrong, as you surely know" and "this is great for the country. i realize what is great for the country isn't always what's optimal for your companies." Mr. Musk then made an unsolicited $97.4 billion bid to buy OpenAI in February. Mr. Altman brushed him off and suggested that Mr. Musk lives his whole life "from a position of insecurity" and is probably not "a happy person." If OpenAI launches a social network it could also put the company in competition with Meta, which owns Facebook. Mr. Altman responded to a report that Meta planned to released a standalone Meta AI app to compete with ChatGPT by saying, "ok fine maybe we'll do a social app" in an X post. He added, "lol if facebook tries to come at us and we just uno reverse them it would be so funny." It was unknown if the company hopes to release the social network as a standalone app or integrate it into ChatGPT. It also was possible that OpenAI could abandon the project prior to launch, according to the Verge.