Elon Musk speaking at a press conference discussing AI safety concerns, referencing OpenAI’s mission to prevent dystopian out

Editorial illustration for Musk says he founded OpenAI to avoid 'Terminator' outcome; xAI safety criticized

Musk says he founded OpenAI to avoid 'Terminator'...

Musk says he founded OpenAI to avoid 'Terminator' outcome; xAI safety criticized

By AI Daily Post Edited by Brian Petersen, Editor-in-Chief

May 4, 2026 • Updated: May 7, 2026 • 2 min read

Elon Musk’s testimony painted a picture of a founder who felt compelled to act when official channels fell short. He recounted a decades‑long unease about machines outpacing human intellect, a concern that began in his university years and later drove him to press policymakers for safeguards against what experts label artificial general intelligence. A 2015 discussion with then‑President Barack Obama was cited as a concrete example of those outreach efforts, yet Musk concluded that the response was insufficient.

The result, he argued, was the birth of OpenAI—a venture meant to steer development toward a future more akin to optimistic science‑fiction than dystopian cinema. At the same time, his newest company, xAI, has drawn fire from peers who describe its safety practices as careless. The juxtaposition of Musk’s self‑described preventative motive with external criticism raises a question: can the same individual who helped launch a safety‑focused organization now oversee a lab whose risk culture is under scrutiny?

Musk has been concerned about computers becoming smarter than people “since he was a young man in college,” his attorney Steven Molo told jurors. Molo explained that Musk lobbied governments to pass regulations addressing the prospect of so-called artificial general intelligence, including meeting with then-president Barack Obama in 2015. “But the government was not stepping up,” Molo said.

“Elon felt he had to do something.” While Musk believes AI could cure diseases and generate prosperity for humanity, he also told the court that he thinks the technology could veer off into catastrophic scenarios straight out of science fiction. “It could also kill all of us … the Terminator outcome. I think we want to be in a movie … like Star Trek, not a James Cameron movie,” Musk said.

(While Musk has long raised alarms about AI safety, his current firm, xAI, has been criticized by researchers at other AI labs for its “reckless” safety culture.)
— Musk says he founded OpenAI to avoid 'Terminator' outcome; xAI safety criticized — www.wired.com

Why this matters

Did Musk really founded OpenAI to sidestep a Terminator scenario? In his opening testimony, he framed the lawsuit as a safety issue rather than a mere business dispute, arguing that his original intent was to keep artificial intelligence from threatening humanity. The courtroom also heard that a for‑profit arm with fixed investor returns was agreed upon early in the partnership, a detail that could shape future governance.

Yet researchers have labeled Musk’s current venture, xAI, as having a “reckless” safety culture, a criticism that casts doubt on the consistency of his safety narrative. If the case leads to governance changes, OpenAI’s planned IPO this year could've faced significant hurdles, potentially delaying capital‑raising efforts. Meanwhile, the legal battle pits Musk directly against Sam Altman for the first time, highlighting a split that has persisted for a decade.

Whether the outcome will alter OpenAI’s trajectory remains unclear, and the broader implications for AI oversight are still uncertain.