Didn't think Elon Musk was going to abuse his power in the government: Sam Altman
Bloomberg Sam Altman, CEO, OpenAI and Elon Musk, founder, xAI
Speaking at OpenAI's new podcast, CEO Sam Altman discussed a range of topics, from the potential ChatGPT 5 release date to the New York Times lawsuit.When discussing the Stargate project, Altman said, 'I didn't think Elon was going to abuse his power in the government to unfairly compete.''I regret to say I was wrong about that,' he said.
He was responding to the host's question regarding reports that Musk had attempted to derail the project. The Wall Street Journal had reported that Musk had made significant efforts to block the project unless it included his own AI startup, xAI.
The 'Stargate UAE' project aims to build the world's largest set of AI data centres outside the United States, and its first phase is expected to come online by 2026.
'I just think it's really unfortunate for the country that he would do these things, and I didn't think, I genuinely didn't think he was going to,' he continued.
However, he added that he is grateful that the administration did the 'right thing' and stood up to his behaviour.He also shared what it felt like to visit the $500 billion project's first site in Abilene, Texas.
Also Read: OpenAI, Oracle developing 'world's biggest' AI training facility: Sam Altman 'I knew in my head what an order of gigawatt scale site looks like,' the OpenAI CEO said. 'But then to go see one being built and the, like, thousands of people running around doing construction and…. stand inside the rooms where the GPUs are getting installed and just, like, look at how complex the whole system is and the speed with which it's going is quite something.'
The Stargate project is a $500 billion initiative that brings together major tech firms, with SoftBank and OpenAI leading the way. SoftBank manages the financials, and its CEO, Masayoshi Son, chairs the project, while OpenAI has taken responsibility for operations. Oracle and MGX have also come on board as equity investors. Altman had claimed that the facility in Texas would be the biggest in the world.
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