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Sources: Musk approached AI researchers in recent weeks about forming a research lab to make a ChatGPT rival; Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015 before cutting ties

Elon Musk has approached artificial intelligence researchers in recent weeks about forming a new research lab to develop …

The Information Jon Victor

Context & Ripple Effects

Musk’s outreach follows his break with OpenAI, which related coverage attributes to his view that the lab lagged Google and to a rejected bid to run it. It is the opening move in a project later reported as a planned OpenAI rival backed by Tesla and SpaceX investor talks, with Twitter considered for training data and Tesla for computing resources.

The prospective lab also fits Twitter’s reported generative-AI buildout, including GPU purchases and LLM work, rather than a purely standalone research effort.

First-order effects

  • AI researchers become immediate recruiting targets for a Musk-backed effort explicitly aimed at competing with ChatGPT.
  • OpenAI gains a prospective rival led by a former co-founder whose split from the organization was tied to disagreement over its competitive position.

Second-order effects

  • Tesla, SpaceX and Twitter become potential sources of capital, compute and data for the new lab, as later reporting describes, tightening the link between Musk’s existing companies and its AI push.
  • OpenAI’s planned shift of ChatGPT toward a work-focused personal assistant raises the stakes for a rival lab: competition would extend beyond model research into the product layer. OpenAI’s work-assistant plan makes that overlap explicit.

Third-order effects

  • If labs continue to assemble models around affiliated capital, compute and data, frontier-AI competition will favor founders able to coordinate several large platforms rather than research organizations alone.
  • The episode points to further concentration in frontier AI, where recruiting elite researchers is paired with access to costly infrastructure and distribution.

The trend: Frontier-AI challengers are increasingly being organized around concentrated pools of capital, compute, data and existing platform reach.

Discussion

  • @elonmusk Elon Musk on x
    But, all things considered with regard to AGI existential angst, I would prefer to be alive now to witness AGI than be alive in the past and not
  • @elonmusk Elon Musk on x
    Having a bit of AI existential angst today
  • @tante @tante on x
    OpenAI isn't racist enough. https://twitter.com/...
  • @jessicalessin Jessica Lessin on x
    .@elonmusk is recruiting a team to build an “anti-woke” AI and competitor to ChatGPT. Scoop with @jon_victor_ https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
  • @jon_victor_ Jon Victor on x
    Exclusive: Elon Musk has approached artificial intelligence researchers in recent weeks about forming a new research lab to develop an alternative to ChatGPT, the high-profile chatbot made by the startup OpenAI https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
  • @sarthakgh Sar Haribhakti on x
    Musk was one of the earliest backers of DeepMind. Then Google bought it and he had concerns. He later cofounded OpenAI as a competitor. And now has concerns so trying to back another competitor. He is a better at ensuring competition than FTC lol https://twitter.com/...
  • @nickadobos Nick Dobos on x
    $44 billion was a steal https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
  • @sailortabbycat @sailortabbycat on x
    This literally means it's just going to be a racist bigoted AI https://twitter.com/...
  • @alvinfoo @alvinfoo on x
    Elon Musk is creating a new AI lab to compete against #ChatGPT. He's repeatedly criticized ChatGPT as being “woke”. More broadly, Elon Musk has expressed disappointment at #OpenAI's development as an organization. #generativeAi #AI https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
  • @nickwingfield Nick Wingfield on x
    Elon: MGAIGA (Make Generative AI Great Again)? Great scoop by @jon_victor_ and @Jessicalessin https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
  • @quinnypig @quinnypig on x
    Surely you will be treated fairly and well if you participate in this. https://twitter.com/...
  • @mattyglesias Matthew Yglesias on x
    We're living in a very stupid timeline https://www.theinformation.com/ ...
  • @usethespacebar @usethespacebar on x
    Probably shouldn't have fired one of the best AI teams ever assembled by a single company. Whoops. But sure, go for it man, if it goes as well as Tesla FSD I'm sure it'll kill hundreds of people. https://twitter.com/...