In a surprising development within Silicon Valley’s tech landscape, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has openly rejected Elon Musk’s $97 billion acquisition offer.

Reports indicate that a group of investors, led by Musk, attempted to acquire OpenAI earlier today. Musk, among OpenAI’s founders before stepping down from its board in 2018, justified the offer by stating his desire to return the company to its open-source and safety-driven roots.

“It’s time for OpenAI to return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was. We will make sure that happens,” Musk said in a statement.

Altman, however, swiftly dismissed the proposal, taking to X (formerly Twitter) to fire back at Musk. He wrote:

“No thank you, but we will buy Twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.”

The exchange reignites tensions between the two tech moguls, who have had a history of disagreements over AI’s role and direction. Musk has long criticized OpenAI for straying from its original nonprofit mission, while Altman has pushed for a commercial approach, leading to major product launches like ChatGPT.

The rejection underscores a fundamental divide in their visions for AI. While Musk champions a nonprofit, scientific approach, Altman continues to steer OpenAI as a for-profit AI powerhouse.

The tech industry is now closely watching how this standoff will shape the future of AI innovation, competition, and corporate strategy.