OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has publicly responded to renewed criticism from Elon Musk after the Tesla chief amplified claims linking ChatGPT to nine deaths and advised users against letting their "loved ones" use the AI chatbot. The exchange highlights the escalating tensions between the two former collaborators and raises questions about AI safety standards.

The Initial Claims and Musk's Response

The controversy began when Musk reacted to allegations from DogeDesigner, a crypto-focused influencer account, which claimed that "ChatGPT has now been linked to 9 deaths tied to its use." The post alleged five cases where interactions with the chatbot contributed to suicide among teens and adults, though these figures could not be independently verified.

Altman's Defense and Counter-Criticism

Altman responded within hours, accusing Musk of applying inconsistent standards to ChatGPT's safety measures. "Sometimes you complain about ChatGPT being too restrictive, and then in cases like this you claim it's too relaxed," Altman wrote on X, highlighting what he described as contradictory criticism.

The OpenAI CEO emphasized the complexity of managing safety for ChatGPT's massive user base. "Almost a billion people use it and some of them may be in very fragile mental states," he explained. "We will continue to do our best to get this right and we feel huge responsibility to do the best we can, but these are tragic and complicated situations that deserve to be treated with respect."

Altman acknowledged the ongoing challenge of balancing protection with accessibility, stating: "It is genuinely hard; we need to protect vulnerable users, while also making sure our guardrails still allow all of our users to benefit from our tools."

Tesla Autopilot Safety Concerns Raised

Shifting to counter-criticism, Altman referenced safety controversies surrounding Tesla's driver-assistance technology. He cited reports indicating that "more than 50 people have died from crashes related to Autopilot," drawing a parallel between AI safety concerns across different platforms.

Altman also referenced Musk's AI venture xAI and its chatbot Grok, stating: "I won't even start on some of the Grok decisions," before concluding with a pointed remark: "You take 'every accusation is a confession' so far."

Broader Legal and Business Context

This public exchange represents another escalation in the increasingly contentious relationship between the two tech leaders, who were both involved in OpenAI's early development. The dispute occurs against the backdrop of Musk's ongoing lawsuit against OpenAI, where he accuses the company of abandoning its original nonprofit mission and marginalizing his early contributions.

The legal action seeks substantial damages from both OpenAI and its largest backer Microsoft, further deepening the rift between the parties and highlighting fundamental disagreements about AI development and commercialization approaches.

A federal judge has denied OpenAI and Microsoft's attempts to avoid a jury trial over Elon Musk's allegations that the artificial intelligence startup abandoned its charitable mission when it accepted billions in funding and restructured as a for-profit entity. The ruling sets the stage for a high-profile legal battle between former business partners turned rivals in the AI industry.

Court Rejects Dismissal Motions

US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California rejected the companies' dismissal requests on Thursday and ordered the case to proceed to trial scheduled for late April. The judge found that Musk, who helped launch OpenAI in 2015 before founding competing AI company xAI in 2023, has sufficient legal standing to challenge the company's transformation.

Charitable Trust Claims Survive

Judge Gonzalez Rogers refused to dismiss Musk's core accusation that OpenAI breached its promise to operate as a charitable trust. She noted that while evidence remains unclear, Musk claims his contributions had "a specific charitable purpose" with two fundamental conditions: that OpenAI remain open source and maintain its nonprofit status, consistent with the company's original charter and mission.

The court rejected OpenAI's argument that Musk's use of an intermediary to donate $38 million in seed funding strips him of legal standing to enforce those charitable conditions. "Holding otherwise would significantly reduce the enforcement of a large swath of charitable trusts, contrary to the modern trend," the judge wrote.

Internal Communications Reveal Doubts

The judge's decision to allow fraud allegations to proceed centered on internal communications from OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman. In September 2017, Brockman emailed Musk expressing his desire to "continue with the non-profit structure" of OpenAI.

However, two months later, Brockman wrote in a private note: "cannot say that we are committed to the non-profit. don't want to say that we're committed. if three months later we're doing b-corp then it was a lie." The judge determined these communications raise sufficient questions about potential deception to warrant jury consideration.

Microsoft's Role Under Scrutiny

While the court dismissed Musk's claim that Microsoft "unjustly" enriched itself at his expense, citing the lack of a quasi-contractual relationship between Musk and the software giant, other allegations against Microsoft will proceed to trial. Judge Gonzalez Rogers found that Musk presented "considerable evidence raising a triable issue of fact that Microsoft had actual knowledge beyond vague suspicion of wrongdoing."

The jury will ultimately decide whether Microsoft helped OpenAI breach its responsibilities to donors like Musk when the companies formed their multibillion-dollar partnership.

Company Responses and Background

OpenAI dismissed the lawsuit in a statement, calling it "baseless and a part of his ongoing pattern of harassment." The company, maker of ChatGPT and recently valued at $500 billion, announced its restructuring in October, granting Microsoft a 27% ownership stake while keeping the nonprofit arm in control of for-profit operations.

The transformation fulfilled CEO Sam Altman's long-held objective to operate as a public benefit corporation. OpenAI previously rejected Musk's unsolicited $97.4 billion bid to acquire the nonprofit's assets, with Altman denouncing the lawsuit as weaponization of the legal system to slow down a competitor.