Geoffrey Hinton, often referred to as the “Godfather of AI,” has expressed his backing for Elon Musk’s ongoing lawsuit against OpenAI over the company’s controversial transition from a non-profit research organization to a for-profit entity. Hinton, a Nobel laureate and AI pioneer, criticized OpenAI’s move to abandon its non-profit status, a decision that has sparked significant concern within the AI community, including among OpenAI’s co-founders, such as Musk.
In a statement issued through Encode, a youth-led advocacy group focused on human-centered AI, Hinton remarked, “OpenAI was founded as an explicitly safety-focused non-profit and made a variety of safety-related promises in its charter. It received numerous tax and other benefits from its non-profit status. Allowing it to tear all of that up when it becomes inconvenient sends a very bad message to other actors in the ecosystem.”
OpenAI, initially launched in 2015 with the goal of ensuring artificial intelligence benefits humanity, has shifted its focus in recent years. The company’s transition to a for-profit entity has drawn criticism, especially from Musk, who filed a lawsuit in February accusing OpenAI of violating its non-profit mission by partnering with Microsoft. Musk claimed that OpenAI’s leadership misled him into co-founding the company under false pretenses, emphasizing AI’s existential risks.
Encode, which released Hinton’s statement, has also supported Musk’s legal efforts by filing an amicus brief. Adam Billen, Encode’s vice president of public policy, pointed out the importance of keeping AI development under public control. He argued, “From the start, OpenAI’s mission was to keep its technology under the control of a nonprofit accountable to the public. Its decision to abandon that mission in favor of profit underscores why public involvement is essential in shaping the future of this transformative technology.”
This criticism follows earlier comments Hinton made in October, during a press conference after receiving his Nobel Prize. At that time, he described OpenAI CEO Sam Altman as “much less concerned with safety than with profits,” calling the situation “unfortunate.”
OpenAI’s rapid rise, especially following its $6.6 billion funding round that valued the company at $157 billion, has raised questions about the delicate balance between technological progress and responsible AI development.
