TLDR: Tesla and X CEO Elon Musk has reignited his long-standing feud with OpenAI, publicly accusing the artificial intelligence research organization of abandoning its original non-profit mission and misusing its charitable status for financial gain. His remarks, made on October 11, 2025, on X, followed a critical post by former OpenAI board member Helen Toner.
San Francisco, CA – October 11, 2025 – Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and X, has once again launched a scathing attack on OpenAI, the artificial intelligence research organization he co-founded. On Friday, October 11, Musk took to X (formerly Twitter) to declare that ‘OpenAI is built on a lie,’ further alleging that ‘They stole a charity and used it for their own financial gain.’
Musk’s latest criticisms were sparked by a retweet of a post from Helen Toner, a former OpenAI board member. Toner’s post highlighted concerns about ‘dishonesty & intimidation tactics’ within OpenAI’s policy work, stating, ‘Every so often, OpenAI employees ask me how I see the co now. It’s always tough to give a simple answer. Some things they’re doing, eg on CoT monitoring or building out system cards, are great. But the dishonesty & intimidation tactics in their policy work are really not.’ Musk’s concise, yet impactful, response ‘OpenAI is built on a lie’ quickly garnered significant attention.
This public condemnation is the latest chapter in a prolonged dispute between Musk and OpenAI. Founded in 2015 by Musk, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and others, OpenAI was initially established as a non-profit AI research lab with a stated mission to ensure artificial general intelligence (AGI) benefits all of humanity. Musk contributed substantial early funding and strategic guidance to the organization. However, he departed from OpenAI’s board in 2018 due to fundamental disagreements over the company’s future direction.
The core of Musk’s contention lies in OpenAI’s subsequent shift from a purely non-profit structure. In 2019, the organization introduced a ‘capped-profit’ subsidiary, OpenAI LP, a move designed to attract significant investment, notably from Microsoft. Critics, including Musk, argue that this restructuring and the close partnership with a major tech corporation represent a profound betrayal of OpenAI’s foundational altruistic principles, transforming it into a ‘closed-source, profit-driven Microsoft subsidiary.’
Earlier in 2025, Musk had escalated his concerns by filing a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, alleging ‘breach of contract’ and claiming the firm had unlawfully transitioned into a for-profit entity. Although that lawsuit was later withdrawn, the underlying tensions clearly persist, as evidenced by his recent remarks. OpenAI, for its part, has consistently defended its operational model, asserting that it remains dedicated to developing safe and beneficial AI while also striving for financial sustainability.
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Musk’s renewed criticisms come just days after OpenAI celebrated the first anniversary of its text-to-video application, Sora, highlighting the ongoing scrutiny of the company’s governance and mission as AI technology continues its rapid advancement.
