Elon Musk dismissed a proposal by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in early 2018 to launch a cryptocurrency token through an initial coin offering (ICO), citing concerns over the potential damage to OpenAI’s reputation. According to a Nov. 14 court filing in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Musk stated that the ICO would “result in a massive loss of credibility for OpenAI and everyone associated with it.”
The ICO plan came just months after Altman and OpenAI President Greg Brockman suggested shifting OpenAI from a non-profit to a for-profit model in 2017. Musk opposed the shift, offering Altman and Brockman an ultimatum to either commit to OpenAI’s original non-profit structure or pursue independent ventures. Musk eventually ceased funding OpenAI, calling the situation a “get-rich-quick scheme.”
In August 2023, Musk renewed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging the organization violated its original non-profit commitments. On the same day as the filing, a separate 2022 class-action lawsuit against Musk for allegedly manipulating Dogecoin prices was voluntarily withdrawn.
Source: Cointelegraph
