Elon Musk vs Sam Altman: Tech Leaders Exchange Bitter Verbal Spat on Social Media Over AI Rivalry, Musk Says Altman Received Refund for Tesla Car; Check Details
Elon Musk and Sam Altman engaged in a bitter social media spat after the OpenAI CEO criticised Tesla for a delayed car delivery and an incomplete refund. Musk accused Altman of stealing a non-profit, while Altman defended OpenAI and said he had turned it into the largest non-profit ever. Both tech leaders argued over their long-standing AI rivalry.
San Francisco, November 3: Elon Musk and Sam Altman have not seen eye to eye for years, and now their rivalry has turned into a personal fight. The duo exchanged relentless verbal attacks on each other on social media, each trying to hurt the other and win the argument. This all started when OpenAI CEO Sam Altman posted about the 7.5-year delay in receiving his Tesla car and how his refund of USD 45,000 was incomplete despite full payment.
Elon Musk replied to Altman, saying, "You stole a non-profit," in response to Altman’s "A tale of three facts" post on X. Responding to this, Sam Altman said, "I helped the thing you left for dead into what should be the largest non-profit ever." He added, "You know as well as anyone that a structure like what OpenAI has now is required to make that happen." ‘I Really Was Excited for the Car’: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman Says He Waited 7.5 Years for Tesla Roadster After Reservation, Shares He Is Unable To Cancel It.
I Made OpenAI Largest Non-Profit Company Ever, Says CEO Altman to Elon Musk
"You Stole a Non-Profit", Responds Elon Musk to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman
Elon Musk Says Tesla Refunded to Sam Altman in 24 Hours
Elon Musk vs Sam Altman; Rivalry Turned to Bitter Verbal Spat
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman accused Elon Musk of attempting to take over OpenAI and of wanting "no non-profit at all". He further claimed that Musk had told him there was a 0% chance of success for the company. Sam Altman said, "Now you have a great AI company, and so do we. Can’t we all just move on?" Elon Musk stopped responding to Altman’s posts; however, he later replied about the Tesla delayed car refund on X. Elon Musk Calls for ‘Proper Investigation’ Into OpenAI Whistleblower Suchir Balaji’s Death (Watch Video).
"And you forgot to mention Act 4, where this issue was fixed and you received a refund within 24 hours," said Musk, referring to the Tesla car refund issued to Sam Altman. OpenAI is currently valued at USD 500 billion, and the AI company is preparing for an IPO in 2026, which is expected to raise its valuation to USD 1 trillion, according to reports. On the other hand, xAI is valued at around USD 200 billion. OpenAI has ChatGPT and various other AI tools such as Sora, Whisper, coding agents, and more. xAI offers Grok, Grokipedia, and Grok Imagine.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 03, 2025 08:35 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).