Large language model developer OpenAI is reportedly working on a new social media network, putting the company on a collision course with Elon Musk’s X and Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta Platforms.
Citing anonymous sources, The Verge reported on April 15 that OpenAI is developing an “X-like social network” that combines ChatGPT’s image generation tools and a social feed, presumably to allow users to share their AI-generated pictures with a broader audience.
It’s unclear whether OpenAI will spin out a new social media platform or roll the features into ChatGPT, the sources said.
OpenAI has become one of the most powerful technology companies in the world following the overwhelming success of its ChatGPT models. Its first-mover advantage in the AI race allowed it to raise $40 billion at a $300 billion valuation in a funding deal that was spearheaded by SoftBank Group.
A pivot into social media — a natural landing spot for an AI company whose tools can be used for content creation and building chatbots for specialized tasks — would up the ante in the ongoing battle between former colleagues Sam Altman and Elon Musk.
Musk and Altman: A complicated history
The rivalry between the two entrepreneurs stems from OpenAI’s commercialization efforts and Altman’s alleged abandonment of the startup’s founding mission as a nonprofit.
Musk and a group of investors reportedly tabled a $97.4 billion buyout offer for OpenAI in February, but the proposed deal was apparently rejected by Altman, who took to social media to say “no thank you.”
Altman did, however, express interest in buying X for $9.74 billion, or one-tenth of the proposed OpenAI buyout bid. The curt response may or may not have been genuine.
Musk responded to Altman’s post by calling him a “swindler.”
Musk acquired X, formerly Twitter, in a $44 billion deal in 2022. The platform remains a hotbed for social media engagement across the cryptocurrency industry.
On March 7, US President Donald Trump used X to deliver welcoming remarks for the “first-ever White House Digital Asset Summit” in Washington, DC.
