Musk revisits broken friendship in OpenAI trial testimony
▼ Summary
– Elon Musk testified that a key reason he co-founded OpenAI was a dispute with Google’s Larry Page over AI safety, where Page dismissed the risk of AI wiping out humanity.
– Musk and Page were once close friends, with Fortune listing them as secretly best-friend business leaders in 2016, and Musk often staying at Page’s home.
– Their friendship ended when Musk recruited Google AI star Ilya Sutskever for OpenAI in 2015, which Page saw as a personal betrayal.
– Musk had previously recounted this story to author Walter Isaacson, but Tuesday’s testimony was the first time he said it under oath.
– As recently as 2023, Musk expressed a desire to reconcile with Page, stating they were friends for a very long time.
Elon Musk took the witness stand Tuesday in his lawsuit against OpenAI, and while much of the testimony zeroed in on the charitable mission he claims was hijacked, the most compelling moment had nothing to do with money. It was about a broken friendship , and a philosophical divide so deep it severed one of the most powerful alliances in Silicon Valley.
Musk recounted how his decision to co-found OpenAI in 2015 was fueled by a falling-out with Google co-founder Larry Page over artificial intelligence safety. During one conversation, Musk warned that unchecked AI could wipe out humanity. Page’s response? That would be “fine,” so long as AI itself survived. Page then called Musk a “speciest” for being “pro human.” Musk called the attitude “insane.”
The rift is especially striking given how tight the two once were. In 2016, Fortune named them to a list of secretly best-friend business leaders. Musk was so at ease with Page that he regularly crashed at his Palo Alto home. Page once told journalist Charlie Rose he would rather give his money to Musk than to charity.
That friendship did not survive OpenAI. When Musk poached Google AI star Ilya Sutskever to help launch the startup, Page felt personally betrayed and cut off all contact.
Musk has shared this story before , including with author Walter Isaacson for his bestselling biography , but Tuesday marked the first time he said it under oath. Page has not commented, and it’s worth remembering that everything Musk said was in service of a lawsuit. Still, as recently as 2023, Musk told tech podcaster Lex Fridman he wanted to repair the relationship: “We were friends for a very long time.”
(Source: TechCrunch)
