There are never permanent enemies in this world.
Latest court documents reveal that Musk attempted to recruit his "arch-rival" - Meta CEO Zuckerberg - to join his $97.4 billion OpenAI acquisition bid in February this year. However, Meta did not sign any letter of intent nor actually participate in the transaction. OpenAI's board formally rejected Musk's acquisition proposal in February.
Had this acquisition succeeded, it would have sent shockwaves through Silicon Valley. Notably, Musk and Zuckerberg were engaged in public feuds in 2023 over the competition between Threads and X, even hyping up a potential "cage fight." The revelation of their possible brief alliance in the AI race highlights the intensity of the artificial intelligence competition and reflects how supposed sworn enemies can become potential allies when capital and strategic interests are at stake.
**The Complex Relationship Between Musk and OpenAI**
Musk was one of OpenAI's co-founders, investing tens of millions of dollars in the early stages, but left the board in 2018 and established xAI in 2023. Since OpenAI's transformation into a for-profit organization, Musk has been a long-term critic, believing it has deviated from its original philanthropic mission.
In February this year, Musk first attempted to force an auction of the non-profit entity that ultimately controls OpenAI's business, then subsequently made a direct acquisition offer.
According to court documents, this $97.4 billion acquisition offer was supported by Musk's long-term investors, including Valor Equity Partners, Baron Capital, Atreides Management, Vy Capital, 8VC, media executive Ari Emanuel, as well as Musk's own company xAI.
However, OpenAI quickly rejected the offer, with insiders viewing the acquisition attempt as Musk's "public relations stunt."
**Acquisition Intent May Weaken Musk's Legal Position**
The legal disputes between Musk and OpenAI continue. As part of the litigation, OpenAI has requested the court to compel Meta to submit relevant records of communications with Musk in the latest court filings. If this evidence is accepted, it could potentially weaken Musk's legal claims.
Previously, he accused Altman's partnership with Microsoft of betraying OpenAI's philanthropic mission, but the revelation that he secretly lobbied OpenAI's main competitor to join the acquisition plan may contradict his accusations.
In fact, the judge overseeing the case has previously pointed out that if Musk had attempted to merge OpenAI into Tesla Motors or push for its transformation into a for-profit enterprise, these efforts themselves could potentially weaken his allegations against Altman and OpenAI.
Meta has urged the court to dismiss OpenAI's request, emphasizing: "Meta neither participated in Musk's acquisition offer, nor could its documents possibly contain evidence of alleged 'coordination' with Musk, and there is no information about Meta attempting to acquire OpenAI or other related matters."
**Intensifying AI Talent War Among Tech Giants**
Behind this acquisition attempt lies the fierce competition among tech giants for AI talent. Court documents show that Meta is "investing heavily" in its own AI research and development, offering astronomical salaries exceeding $100 million to top researchers from OpenAI and other companies to attract them to join.
Musk, Zuckerberg, and Altman have been engaged in close combat in the AI talent market recently, poaching core team members from each other, striving to gain advantages in the next-generation artificial intelligence model development race.
More dramatically, Musk and Zuckerberg have always had tense relationships in public.
Particularly in 2023, when Zuckerberg launched Threads to compete with Musk's X platform, the two engaged in mutual mockery on social media and even hyped up the "cage fight" incident. Against this backdrop, Musk's attempt to recruit Zuckerberg to jointly acquire OpenAI appears particularly unexpected.