OpenAI Asks California and Delaware Attorneys General to Investigate Elon Musk's Anti-Competitive Behavior

OpenAI has sent formal letters to the attorneys general of California and Delaware, requesting state-level investigations into what it characterizes as "improper and anti-competitive behavior" by Elon Musk — and specifically alleging that Musk is coordinating his campaign against the company with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

The move escalates an already contentious legal battle between OpenAI and its co-founder, just three weeks before jury selection begins in Musk's lawsuit against the company.

What OpenAI Is Alleging

OpenAI strategy chief Jason Kwon signed the letters, which claim Musk has been "coordinating his efforts" with Zuckerberg in a deliberate campaign to undermine OpenAI's ability to restructure from a nonprofit to a capped-profit entity. OpenAI's global affairs chief Chris Lehane described this alleged collusion as an operation by "two of the wealthiest, most powerful people in the world" aimed specifically at obstructing OpenAI's mission.

The framing is significant: OpenAI isn't just arguing that Musk's lawsuit is meritless — it's arguing that Musk's legal and public relations campaign constitutes anti-competitive conduct that state enforcers should independently investigate.

The Trial Is Three Weeks Away

The timing matters. Jury selection for Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI is scheduled to begin April 27, 2026. The lawsuit, originally filed in 2024, alleges that OpenAI violated its founding mission as a nonprofit dedicated to beneficial AI development by pivoting toward commercial operations.

Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015, contributed early funding, and served on its board before departing in 2018 — reportedly after a failed attempt to take control of the organization and merge it with Tesla. He subsequently founded xAI, which operates the Grok chatbot, making him a direct competitor.

OpenAI's Counter-Narrative

OpenAI has consistently argued that Musk's lawsuit is not a principled stand for nonprofit accountability but a competitive maneuver designed to slow down a rival. By sending these letters to state attorneys general, OpenAI is trying to shift the litigation dynamics — turning itself from a defendant into an accuser and framing Musk as the anti-competitive actor.

The Zuckerberg-Musk coordination angle is particularly aggressive. If OpenAI can demonstrate that two of the most powerful executives in tech are jointly working to undermine it, that reframes the public narrative considerably.

xAI's Counter-Allegations

For its part, xAI has also made anti-competitive allegations against OpenAI, claiming the company has used its dominant position to stifle competition in AI development. Both sides are effectively accusing the other of playing dirty — which means the trial, if it proceeds, could become a remarkably public airing of Silicon Valley's internal power struggles.

The California and Delaware AGs have not yet indicated whether they will act on OpenAI's letters.