The tension between Tesla shareholders and CEO Elon Musk has reached a boiling point as a lawsuit has been filed against Musk and the company’s board. The lawsuit alleges that Musk’s xAI startup is diverting valuable artificial intelligence talent and resources from Tesla, causing concern among investors.
The lawsuit, filed by the Cleveland Bakers and Teamsters Pension Fund along with individual shareholders, claims that xAI, described as a “competing company,” has been benefiting from Tesla’s AI expertise and resources. Key to the complaint is the accusation that xAI has hired essential AI-focused employees from Tesla, including former leader of Tesla’s computer vision team, Ethan Knight.
Shareholders criticize Tesla’s board for failing to intervene and allowing Musk to divert resources to xAI. The lawsuit seeks the return of the value allegedly diverted from Tesla to xAI. The tension between shareholders and Musk is further highlighted by Musk’s reluctance to expand Tesla’s AI initiatives without holding a significant voting control.
Overall, the lawsuit sheds light on the conflicts of interest between Musk’s ventures and Tesla’s AI resources. In other news, Musk has recently threatened to ban Apple devices in his companies if OpenAI’s ChatGPT is integrated into iOS, citing security concerns. The outcome of the lawsuit will likely have significant implications for the future of Tesla’s AI development.
