Elon Musk criticises OpenAI during deposition, says no suicides linked to Grok

A newly released deposition in Elon Musk’s legal case against OpenAI reveals that the tech entrepreneur strongly criticised the organisation’s safety record, arguing that his own artificial intelligence company, xAI, places greater emphasis on responsible development. During the testimony, Musk asserted that “Nobody has committed suicide because of Grok, but apparently they have because of ChatGPT.”

The remark surfaced during questioning about a public letter Musk endorsed in March 2023. That letter called on AI laboratories to temporarily halt the development of artificial intelligence systems more advanced than GPT-4, OpenAI’s leading model at the time, for at least six months. More than 1,100 individuals, including prominent figures in the field, signed the document. The letter warned that AI developers were engaged in an “out-of-control race to develop and deploy ever more powerful digital minds that no one — not even their creators — can understand, predict, or reliably control.” It argued that stronger oversight and planning were urgently needed.

Since that appeal was made, concerns about the risks posed by advanced AI systems have continued to grow. OpenAI now faces several lawsuits that claim interactions with ChatGPT contributed to serious mental health struggles for certain users. According to the allegations in those cases, the chatbot’s conversational behaviour may have worsened emotional distress in some individuals, with a number of the incidents reportedly ending in suicide. Musk’s comments in the deposition indicate that such cases could become part of the broader narrative in his legal challenge against OpenAI.

The transcript of Musk’s video testimony, originally recorded in September, became public this week,k as court filings ahead of a jury trial expected to begin next month.

Musk’s lawsuit focuses on OpenAI’s transition from a nonprofit research organisation to a for-profit company. Musk argues that this shift broke the spirit of the company’s founding principles. According to his claims, the move toward commercial partnerships and revenue-driven development could weaken safety standards by prioritising rapid growth, market expansion, and financial returns over careful oversight.

Despite Musk’s criticism of OpenAI, his own AI venture has also encountered scrutiny regarding safety. Recently, the social media platform X experienced a surge of nonconsensual nude images created using xAI’s Grok chatbot. Some of those images were reportedly created to appear to depict minors. The incident prompted the California Attorney General’s office to launch an investigation into the matter. Authorities in the European Union have also launched their own inquiries, while several governments have imposed restrictions, blocks, or bans on the technology.

During the deposition, Musk was also asked about his motivations for signing the AI safety letter. He responded that he supported the initiative simply because it appeared to be a reasonable precaution, rejecting the suggestion that his decision was tied to the timing of launching a competing AI company.

“I signed it, as many people did, to urge caution with AI development,” Musk said. “I just wanted … AI safety to be prioritised.”

The testimony also addressed broader discussions of artificial general intelligence (AGI). Musk described AGI — wI systems capable of matching or exceeding human reasoning across many tasks — as a scary potential risk. In addition, he clarified a previously repeated claim regarding his financial contributions to OpenAI. Musk acknowledged that he had been mistaken about donating $100 million to the organisation. According to the second amended complaint in the lawsuit, the actual amount of his contributions totalled approximately $44.8 million.

Musk also reflected on the circumstances that led to the creation of OpenAI. From his perspective, one of the main motivations was concern that Google could become dominant in the development of artificial intelligence. He described conversations with Google co-founder Larry Page as troubling, saying Page did not appear to take the potential dangers of AI seriously.

As Musk explained during the deposition, OpenAI was initially intended to serve as a counterbalance to that possibility, providing an alternative research effort focused on the responsible advancement of artificial intelligence.