The long-standing feud between Tesla CEO Elon Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman got flared up once again. Recently, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman alleged that he paid $45,000 as a pre-reservation for a Tesla vehicle in July 2018, but is yet to receive the delivery of the car. In a post on microblogging platform X (formerly Twitter), Altman shared screenshots of 3 different emails of the vehicle confirmation, his ask for refund and email bounce back. Altman said that he recently tried to connect with Tesla about the issue, but the email, as per the screenshot, bounced back. It showed an error stating “Address not found”. Telsa CEO Elon Musk has now responded to Altman and accused him of leaving out key details.
Elon Musk responds: ‘That’s in your nature’
Replying to the claims made by Altman, Tesla CEO Elon Musk posted on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) and accused the OpenAI CEO of missing out in the key details. In a pointed replay, Musk wrote, “And you forgot to mention act 4, where this issue was fixed and you received a refund within 24 hours. But that is in your nature.” In a follow-up post, Musk added, “You stole a non-profit,” implying Altman dramatized the situation for attention.
Roadster delays and public frustration
Tesla’s second generation Roadster was first launched in 2017 and Musk called it ‘the fastest production car ever made’. However, the vehicle faced a lot of repeated delays and it remains in “design development” as of Tesla’s latest earnings report.On the other hand, the popular tech YouTube MKBHD also canceled his Roadster reservation recently, citing the prolonged wait. While speaking on the Joe Rogan podcast recently, Musk also teased that the upcoming Roadster would feature ‘crazy technology’ likening it to a mashup of all the James Bond cars. “It’s crazier than that,” Musk said. “We’re getting close. The demo will be unforgettable.”
A history of clashes
The recent refund spat between Elon Musk and Sam Altman is the recent episode in the series of public spat between the two. For the uninitiated, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015, but left the board in 2018. Musk has criticised the company’s shift from open-source ideals to a closed, profit-driven model. Along with this, Musk also accused Altman of steering OpenAI away from its original mission. Musk also went ahead and launched his own AI venture — xAI.Earlier this year, Musk made headlines with a $97 billion bid to acquire OpenAI’s nonprofit arm—a move Altman publicly mocked.
