25-04-2025
Tesla CEO Elon Musk calls this as 'Scam of the century'
Podcaster Rob Wiblin recently shared a post highlighting a legal letter titled 'Not For Private Gain', signed by 3 Nobel Prize winners and dozens of AI researchers, accusing
of illegally restructuring from a non-profit to a for-profit entity.
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Sent to California and Delaware Attorneys General, the letter allegedly demands halting the restructuring of the company. X owner and SpaceX CEO
replied to the post, calling it 'scam of the century'.
The post also has screenshots of the letter with the following text highlighted in colour: All of the governance safeguards that Mr. Altman claimed 'ensure (OpenAI) remains focused on its long-term mission would be in jeopardy'.
It also has a table comparing the current governance safeguards of OpenAI (under its nonprofit structure) with the proposed changes under the for-profit restructuring.
OpenAI on the for-profit status
Founded in 2015 as a non-profit organization, OpenAI is reportedly looking to turn the status to for-profit. The company, as per reports plans to restructure as a public benefit corporation, a shift that has raised concerns among AI experts, legal scholars and former OpenAI employees.
They argue that the move could compromise OpenAI's original mission to develop
artificial general intelligence
(AGI) for the benefit of all humanity.
Elon Musk criticism of OpenAI's for-profit status
Elon Musk, one of the co-founders of OpenAI has been a vocal critic of this transition. He has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI that will go to a jury trial in spring 2026. The lawsuit, initially dismissed, accuses OpenAI CEO
and President Greg Brockman of deviating from its founding agreement by emphasizing profits over
AI safety
.
