Elon Musk asserted on Tuesday that tech behemoths OpenAI, Oraclean, and Softbank lack the funds necessary to carry out their well-publicized commitment to invest $500 billion in American artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Hours after President Donald Trump unveiled the mammoth project at the White House on his first full day in office, the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla made the remark.
In response to an OpenAI post on the new endeavor, known as the Stargate project, on his social media site X, Musk said, “They don’t actually have the money.”
SoftBank has secured well under $10 billion. In a later post, Musk added, “I have that on good authority.”
Musk is currently the head of a significant White House government efficiency initiative and was by far Trump’s largest financial backer in the 2024 election.
Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, responded to Musk personally on Wednesday morning.
Altman said on X, “I truly admire your achievements and believe you are the most inspirational entrepreneur of our time.”
However, Altman stated in a follow-up piece that Musk’s assertion regarding Softbank’s liquidity was incorrect, as you are undoubtedly aware.
I understand that what’s best for your businesses may not always be what’s best for the nation, but in your new position, I hope you’ll prioritize [American flag emoji], he continued.
When CNBC contacted OpenAI and Oracle for comment on Musk’s assertion, they did not immediately reply. Softbank chose not to respond.
According to an individual acquainted with the AI project who was given anonymity to speak about the matter, Musk’s statement regarding Softbank was completely ridiculous.
The source went on to say that Musk’s posts regarding Stargate were undoubtedly sparked by his tense relationship with Altman.
Musk’s remarks cast doubt on Trump’s declaration Tuesday afternoon that Stargate would invest at least $500 billion and very instantly generate over 100,000 American jobs.
It will be something quite remarkable, in my opinion. According to Trump, it will result in what might be the largest of all.
Altman, Softbank CEO Masayoshi Son, and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison were by Trump’s sides as he spoke.
Ten 500,000-square-foot data centers are already being built in Abilene, Texas, and ten more are in the planning stages, Ellison stated during the ceremony.
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Altman and Musk, the head of Trump’s new government efficiency advisory council, DOGE, are at odds.
Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in March, claiming breach of contract, on behalf of his AI business, xAI. Musk eventually withdrew that lawsuit and sued Altman in federal court in August.
Altman’s reaction on X is consistent with the public stance he has already adopted regarding Musk.
When asked in December if he was worried about Musk’s potential use of his White House power, Altman responded, “I may turn out to be wrong, but I believe pretty strongly that Elon will do the right thing.”
In a statement posted on X on Tuesday, OpenAI stated that Stargate will start allocating $100 billion right away.
According to the post, SoftBank, OpenAI, Oracle, and the UAE-based lender MGX are the original equity financiers of the new firm, of which Son will serve as chairman.
Oracle’s stock increased 7% on Tuesday when news of the infrastructure project broke.
Microsoft was mentioned in OpenAI’s report as one of its primary early technical partners in Stargate. The business announced earlier in January that it would spend $80 billion on data centers with AI capabilities in the upcoming fiscal year.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella responded, “I’m not particularly in the details on what they’re investing,” when asked about Stargate on CNBC’s Squawk Box on Wednesday.
Nadella said, “Look, all I know is, I’m good for my $80 billion,” in response to a query concerning Musk’s remarks casting doubt on Stargate’s funding.