ELON MUSK vs. SAM ALTMAN: THE BILLIONAIRE BEEF OVER OPENAI & TWITTER
image created by Vintage Mamani (@vintagemamani)
Oh, the pettiness.
In what might be the richest (literally and figuratively) display of tech drama we’ve seen this year, Elon Musk, alongside other investors, attempted to buy OpenAI for a casual $97.4 billion.
And OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman? Instead of entertaining the offer, he hopped on Twitter (oops, I mean "X") and dropped what might be the most effortlessly dismissive clapback of the year:
"No thank you but we’ll buy Twitter for $9.74 billion."
Not only did he flat-out reject Musk’s bid, but he also mocked Twitter’s current valuation—all while calling the platform by its original name. Because, let’s be real, X just doesn’t hit the same.
Let's Unpack This Beautiful Mess:
Elon Musk co-founded OpenAI—now he’s trying to buy his way back in. Yep. Musk was one of OpenAI’s early backers before walking away when the company decided to focus on AI for the betterment of humanity rather than serving Silicon Valley’s billionaire agenda. Fast-forward to today, and he wants back in—for almost $100 billion. You can't make this up.
Sam Altman basically called Twitter a thrift-store buy. That $9.74 billion counteroffer isn’t just a random number—it’s exactly 10% of Musk’s OpenAI bid. That’s not an offer; that’s a tech-world mic drop. Considering Elon paid $44 billion for Twitter/X, and it’s currently worth way, way less, the shade was loud.
OpenAI’s mission is literally to not sell out. OpenAI was founded to advance artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity, not just shareholders and billionaires. While the company has a for-profit arm to fund its work, its core purpose remains: AI should serve the world, not just the ultra-rich. So Elon offering to buy it? Peak irony.
Twitter’s name refuses to die. Despite Musk’s best efforts to force everyone to call it "X" and erase every last trace of the bird app, even Altman isn’t playing along. It’s the equivalent of someone rebranding themselves with a new nickname that no one actually uses. Sorry, Elon—Twitter is still Twitter.
So, What Happens Now?
Will Elon fire off a cryptic, rage-filled post about AI ethics? Will Sam Altman keep the trolling going and jokingly “outbid” Musk on Tesla next? Will Twitter (sorry, X) continue its chaotic identity crisis while being worth significantly less than what Musk paid for it?
Honestly, probably yes to all of the above.
But the biggest takeaway? OpenAI isn’t for sale. Unlike Twitter/X, it’s not something you can just buy on a billionaire whim. While the tech industry scrambles for AI dominance, OpenAI remains committed to its mission—advancing artificial intelligence for people, not just profit.
And in a world where tech giants are constantly trying to outbuy, outmaneuver, and out-troll each other, sticking to your principles might be the biggest flex of all.
Your move, Elon.
