Elon Musk Sought Mark Zuckerberg’s Help For OpenAI Bid, Court Filing Shows

Aug 22 (Reuters) – Elon Musk tried to enlist rival Mark Zuckerberg for the $97.4 billion bid that his consortium made for OpenAI earlier this year, but the CEO of Meta Platforms did not come on board, OpenAI said in a court filing on Thursday.

OpenAI, the owner of ChatGPT, said Musk had communicated with Zuckerberg about potential financing arrangements or investments in connection with his OpenAI bid, according to the court filing.

OpenAI said Musk had disclosed his communications with Zuckerberg about the company during sworn interrogations.

Musk, whose xAI competes with OpenAI, could not immediately be reached for comment. xAI did not respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.

OpenAI requested a federal judge to order Meta to produce documents and communications related to any bid for OpenAI, and those “concerning any actual or potential restructuring or recapitalization of OpenAI.”

“Meta’s communications with other bidders, or internal communications, including those reflecting discussions with Musk or other bidders, would also shed light on the motivations for the bid,” OpenAI said, calling Musk and Meta two of its most significant competitors.

Meta, in the same court filing, said OpenAI should seek any relevant documents directly from Musk and his AI startup, and asked the judge to deny OpenAI’s motion.

“Meta’s own communications concerning OpenAI’s restructuring or recapitalization (even as narrowed) are not relevant to this action,” Meta added in the court filing.

Earlier in August, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Musk must face OpenAI’s claims that the billionaire, through press statements, social media posts, legal claims and “a sham bid for OpenAI’s assets,” attempted to harm the AI startup.

Tesla boss Musk sued OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman last year over the company’s transition to a for-profit model, after which OpenAI counter-sued Musk in April this year.

A jury trial has been scheduled for spring 2026.

(Reporting by Harshita Meenaktshi and Shubham Kalia in Bengaluru Editing by Mark Potter)