Elon Musk tried to hire OpenAI founders to start AI unit inside Tesla

In 2018, Elon Musk wanted OpenAI founders Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and Ilya Sutskever to lead Tesla's artificial intelligence projects. Musk proposed making OpenAI a Tesla subsidiary or hiring its top executives for a new AI division at the electric car company , but OpenAI's leadership declined, with executives concerned about his understanding of artificial intelligence despite admiring him personally.

Source: Ars Technica | 2026-05-07