Elon Musk
Former OpenAI employees show support for Musk lawsuit
The employees claim that the removal of non-profit status would “fundamentally violate” OpenAI’s mission.
After Elon Musk filed a lawsuit last year against the Sam Altman-run AI firm OpenAI, a group of former employees of the company this week has filed a legal brief supporting the xAI and Tesla leader’s case.
On Friday, a group of 12 former OpenAI employees said in a court filing that the company’s restructuring efforts would “fundamentally violate” the original non-profit mission, as detailed in a report from Reuters. The employees said they were in technical and leadership positions at the company, along with explaining that they believed the not-for-profit model was important for a variety of reasons.
During their time there, oversight of the non-profit was considered a key part of the company’s discussions, according to the group. Although this approach was regularly emphasized during their time at the company, recent pressures from investors to restructure the company into a for-profit could impede on crucial elements of the company’s mission.
The former employees argued that the non-profit structure helped in recruiting efforts, as many of the company’s staffers simply joined because they believed in the original mission. OpenAI, however, responded by claiming that the original mission wouldn’t change even if the structure does.
“Our Board has been very clear: our nonprofit isn’t going anywhere and our mission will remain the same,” the company said in a statement.
🚨NEWS: OpenAI CEO shares some of his thoughts on Elon Musk during a conversation with Bloomberg TV. As per Altman, OpenAI is not for sale.❌
Altman’s comments followed reports that Musk and several large investors have offered $97.4 billion to acquire the nonprofit controlling… pic.twitter.com/bDN8OBr2oR
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) February 11, 2025
READ MORE ON ELON MUSK AND OPENAI: Elon Musk’s criticism about ChatGPT’s ‘woke’ nature gets response from OpenAI co-founder
Musk, who helped start OpenAI but left in 2018, has been highly critical of Altman and OpenAI’s efforts to become a for-profit in recent years. He officially filed a lawsuit against the ChatGPT maker last February, before dropping it in June and reviving it in August.
In the suit, Musk alleged that he had been “betrayed by Altman and his accomplices” after investing around $45 million dollars into the company, while OpenAI and investor Microsoft “established an opaque web of for-profit OpenAI affiliates, engaged in rampant self-dealing.”
In November, Musk’s legal team filed a motion for an injunction with U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who is presiding over the case, claiming that “irreparable harm” would occur if it wasn’t granted. The judge last month denied the injunction request, saying that Musk’s recent offer to buy OpenAI for $97.4 billion undermined his claims of harm.
“Musk has not demonstrated likelihood of success on the merits,” Rogers said in response to the request for an injunction, adding that the original $45 million “is just a lot of money [to invest] on a handshake.”
Despite denying the request, the judge did say that the case could proceed in a California courtroom as soon as this fall, “given the public interest at stake and potential for harm if a conversion contrary to law occurred.”
In a groundbreaking new report from Reuters, SpaceX is reportedly discussing merger possibilities with xAI ahead of the space exploration company’s plans to IPO later this year, in what would be a blockbuster move.
The outlet said it would combine rockets and Starlink satellites, as well as the X social media platform and AI project Grok under one roof. The report cites “a person briefed on the matter and two recent company filings seen by Reuters.”
Musk, nor SpaceX or xAI, have commented on the report, so, as of now, it is unconfirmed.
With that being said, the proposed merger would bring shares of xAI in exchange for shares of SpaceX. Both companies were registered in Nevada to expedite the transaction, according to the report.
On January 21, both entities were registered in Nevada. The report continues:
“One of them, a limited liability company, lists SpaceX and Bret Johnsen, the company’s chief financial officer, as managing members, while the other lists Johnsen as the company’s only officer, the filings show.”
The source also stated that some xAI executives could be given the option to receive cash in lieu of SpaceX stock. No agreement has been reached, nothing has been signed, and the timing and structure, as well as other important details, have not been finalized.
SpaceX is valued at $800 billion and is the most valuable privately held company, while xAI is valued at $230 billion as of November. SpaceX could be going public later this year, as Musk has said as recently as December that the company would offer its stock publicly.
The plans could help move along plans for large-scale data centers in space, something Musk has discussed on several occasions over the past few months.
At the World Economic Forum last week, Musk said:
“It’s a no-brainer for building solar-powered AI data centers in space, because as I mentioned, it’s also very cold in space. The net effect is that the lowest cost place to put AI will be space and that will be true within two to three years, three at the latest.”
He also said on X that “the most important thing in the next 3-4 years is data centers in space.”
If the report is true and the two companies end up coming together, it would not be the first time Musk’s companies have ended up coming together. He used Tesla stock to purchase SolarCity back in 2016. Last year, X became part of xAI in a share swap.
Tesla has announced it has hit a major milestone with Full Self-Driving subscriptions, shortly after it said it would exclusively offer the suite without the option to purchase it outright.
Tesla announced on Wednesday during its Q4 Earnings Call for 2025 that it had officially eclipsed the one million subscription mark for its Full Self-Driving suite. This represented a 38 percent increase year-over-year.
This is up from the roughly 800,000 active subscriptions it reported last year. The company has seen significant increases in FSD adoption over the past few years, as in 2021, it reported just 400,000. In 2022, it was up to 500,000 and, one year later, it had eclipsed 600,000.
NEWS: For the first time, Tesla has revealed how many people are subscribed or have purchased FSD (Supervised).
Active FSD Subscriptions:
• 2025: 1.1 million
• 2024: 800K
• 2023: 600K
• 2022: 500K
• 2021: 400K pic.twitter.com/KVtnyANWcs— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) January 28, 2026
In mid-January, CEO Elon Musk announced that the company would transition away from giving the option to purchase the Full Self-Driving suite outright, opting for the subscription program exclusively.
Musk said on X:
“Tesla will stop selling FSD after Feb 14. FSD will only be available as a monthly subscription thereafter.”
The move intends to streamline the Full Self-Driving purchase option, and gives Tesla more control over its revenue, and closes off the ability to buy it outright for a bargain when Musk has said its value could be close to $100,000 when it reaches full autonomy.
It also caters to Musk’s newest compensation package. One tranche requires Tesla to achieve 10 million active FSD subscriptions, and now that it has reached one million, it is already seeing some growth.
The strategy that Tesla will use to achieve this lofty goal is still under wraps. The most ideal solution would be to offer a less expensive version of the suite, which is not likely considering the company is increasing its capabilities, and it is becoming more robust.
Tesla is shifting FSD to a subscription-only model, confirms Elon Musk
Currently, Tesla’s FSD subscription price is $99 per month, but Musk said this price will increase, which seems counterintuitive to its goal of increasing the take rate. With that being said, it will be interesting to see what Tesla does to navigate growth while offering a robust FSD suite.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s Boring Company opens Vegas Loop’s newest station
The Fontainebleau is the latest resort on the Las Vegas Strip to embrace the tunneling startup’s underground transportation system.
Elon Musk’s tunneling startup, The Boring Company, has welcomed its newest Vegas Loop station at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
The Fontainebleau is the latest resort on the Las Vegas Strip to embrace the tunneling startup’s underground transportation system.
Fontainebleau Loop station
The new Vegas Loop station is located on level V-1 of the Fontainebleau’s south valet area, as noted in a report from the Las Vegas Review-Journal. According to the resort, guests will be able to travel free of charge to the stations serving the Las Vegas Convention Center, as well as to Loop stations in Encore and Westgate.
The Fontainebleau station connects to the Riviera Station, which is located in the northwest parking lot of the convention center’s West Hall. From there, passengers will be able to access the greater Vegas Loop.
Vegas Loop expansion
In December, The Boring Company began offering Vegas Loop rides to and from Harry Reid International Airport. Those trips include a limited above-ground segment, following approval from the Nevada Transportation Authority to allow surface street travel tied to Loop operations.
Under the approval, airport rides are limited to no more than four miles of surface street travel, and each trip must include a tunnel segment. The Vegas Loop currently includes more than 10 miles of tunnels. From this number, about four miles of tunnels are operational.
The Boring Company President Steve Davis previously told the Review-Journal that the University Center Loop segment, which is currently under construction, is expected to open in the first quarter of 2026. That extension would allow Loop vehicles to travel beneath Paradise Road between the convention center and the airport, with a planned station located just north of Tropicana Avenue.
Tesla analyst claims another vehicle, not Model S and X, should be discontinued
SpaceX reportedly discussing merger with xAI ahead of blockbuster IPO
