The board of OpenAI has officially rejected an unsolicited acquisition offer of $97.4 billion from a group of investors spearheaded by Elon Musk.
According to OpenAI chairman Bret Taylor, “OpenAI is not for sale, and the board has unanimously rejected Mr. Musk’s latest attempt to disrupt his competition.” OpenAI counsel Andrew Nussbaum added, “Respectfully, it is not up to a competitor to decide what is in the best interests of OpenAI’s mission.”
The company also communicated its decision in a letter to the attorney representing the investor group. The letter stated that the offer was rejected as not being in the best interests of the company’s mission, citing newly added material conditions to the proposal.
AI startup could be valued as high as $300 billion in a coming funding round.
OpenAI is currently structured as a non-profit with a for-profit subsidiary. The company intends to reorganize into a public benefit company (PBC), a for-profit corporation focused on public and social good. This restructuring is aimed at facilitating fundraising for continued expansion and advancements in AI. As part of the transition, OpenAI is legally obligated to compensate its current non-profit parent organization by providing shares in the newly formed PBC.
OpenAI stated in late 2024 that “Our plan would result in one of the best resourced non-profits in history. The PBC will run and control OpenAI’s operations and business, while the non-profit will hire a leadership team and staff to pursue charitable initiatives in sectors such as health care, education, and science” https://openai.com/index/why-our-structure-must-evolve-to-advance-our-mission/.
Mr. Taylor stated that “Any potential reorganization of OpenAI will strengthen our nonprofit and its mission to ensure AGI [artificial general intelligence] benefits all of humanity.”
OpenAI’s firm stance underscores its commitment to its mission and vision for the future of AI.