ChatGPT Boss Hits Elon Musk With a $97B Hard Pass

Elon Musk and his investor squad have offered $97.4 billion to take over OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT. But Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, wasn’t having it. Instead of a formal rejection, he responded on Musk’s own platform, X, with a cheeky counteroffer: “no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.”

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Musk’s lawyer, Marc Toberoff, confirmed that the bid was submitted to OpenAI’s board, which technically still has the power to consider a sale. And while the offer seems serious on paper, people can’t help but wonder—does Musk actually want OpenAI, or is this just another chapter in his long, messy feud with Altman?

For those who forgot: Musk helped co-found OpenAI back in 2015, then dramatically exited in 2018. Since then, he’s been accusing the company of ditching its non-profit roots in favor of corporate greed. Altman, on the other hand, says OpenAI had no choice but to pivot to a for-profit model to fund its massive AI ambitions. The two have been throwing shade at each other ever since, and this latest takeover attempt is just adding fuel to the fire.

Musk’s offer values OpenAI at $97.4 billion. Sounds like a lot, right? Well, not really, considering the company was valued at $157 billion last October and is reportedly eyeing a $300 billion valuation in its next funding round. That’s like offering to buy a Ferrari for the price of a used Honda. Musk’s team says they’d be willing to match any higher bid, but whether they’ll actually follow through is another story.

And just to make things even spicier, OpenAI is also getting cozy with Oracle, a Japanese investment firm, and an Emirati sovereign wealth fund to build a $500 billion AI infrastructure project in the US. This was unveiled at the White House by none other than President Donald Trump, who hyped it up as “the largest AI infrastructure project by far in history.” But Musk, despite being a top Trump advisor, is calling their bluff, claiming the venture doesn’t “actually have the money” it says it does.

Source; The Guardian, BBC.

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