The links between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's personal investments and the company's business dealings are coming to light in his high-profile lawsuit with Elon Musk. Altman holds stakes in OpenAI's partner companies, sparking conflict-of-interest concerns and prompting calls for a regulatory investigation.
The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that details of Altman's holdings in companies doing business with OpenAI were disclosed during a trial at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California's Oakland Division. Tesla CEO Musk, who co-founded OpenAI, sued the company and Altman, alleging they broke their promise to operate OpenAI as a nonprofit and pursued personal gain.
Altman currently owns a one-third stake in Helion. Given the fusion energy company's valuation, his stake is worth $1.65 billion. This holding played the biggest role in making him a billionaire with a net worth of $4 billion (about 5.98 trillion won). He also holds a $600 million stake in payments company Stripe, a $250 million stake in anti-aging startup Retro Biosciences, and a $3 million stake in semiconductor startup Cerebras.
The fact that Altman, who leads OpenAI, is a major shareholder in its partner companies has amplified conflict-of-interest concerns. Critics say that because he holds no stake in OpenAI, he has mobilized the company to boost the value of his stakes in partners.
In March, OpenAI was reported to be in talks with Helion to receive 50 gigawatts of power supply through 2035. Cerebras, in which he has invested, disclosed during its IPO filing last month that it had received a $1 billion loan from OpenAI. Stripe also handles OpenAI's payment infrastructure, and Retro Biosciences is developing a protein-design artificial intelligence (AI) model with OpenAI.
The WSJ reported that the U.S. House Oversight Committee has begun looking into Altman's conflict-of-interest management, and attorneys general from six states led by Republican governors have urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to investigate.
