Elon Musk has taken another step in his fight against OpenAI, adding Microsoft as a defendant in the lawsuit which seeks to challenge the dominance of both in the artificial intelligence market. The move, which is far from a surprise, adds to a long line of public criticism from Musk of the collaboration between the two companies. Now, his allegations not only point to anti-competitive practices by OpenAI, but also point to Microsoft as a key player in an alleged “de facto merger” designed to monopolize the generative AI sector.

The suit, filed in federal court in California, accuses OpenAI and Microsoft of deviating from the original purpose with which OpenAI was founded in 2015: to develop artificial intelligence for the benefit of all humanity. Musk, who co-founded OpenAI but left the organization in 2018 after strategic disagreements, says the company’s transformation into a for-profit entity, along with its close partnership with Microsoft, betrayed that original mission. Among the initial allegations, it also says that OpenAI aggressively recruited talent from other companies and discouraged investment in its own artificial intelligence company, xAI.

The current turnover includes not only Microsoft, accused of strengthening an alleged monopoly through anti-competitive practices. Musk claims Microsoft has used its financial and technological clout to cement an alliance with OpenAI that limits competition in the market. Additionally, the lawsuit includes entrepreneur Reid Hoffman, a former OpenAI board member and current Microsoft board member, as part of the network Musk is trying to dismantle. In this regard, the tycoon is not only demanding the cancellation of key agreements between OpenAI and Microsoft, but also demanding that both companies return the profits made by these practices.

For its part, OpenAI called the allegations baseless, while Microsoft chose not to comment on the case. While Musk’s arguments have drawn attention, his own stance is not without criticism. Since the founding of xAI in 2023 Musk also occupies a leading position in the artificial intelligence marketwhich casts doubt on whether this dispute reflects genuine interest in the sector or a strategic move to regain ground against rivals such as OpenAI and Microsoft, which should not surprise us given the nature.

The legal battle, in addition to being a confrontation between tech titans, highlights the challenges facing an industry that is growing by leaps and boundswhich, however, could be increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few companies. Is it a fight for a fairer market or a strategy to rebalance the power between the giants? For now, it is clear that the tension surrounding artificial intelligence is far from abated.