TIMELINE-From non-profit roots to for-profit ambitions: the OpenAI saga

ReutersMay 5, 2025 8:25 PM

May 5 (Reuters) - ChatGPT creator OpenAI said it would remain under the control of its nonprofit parent, following a storm of criticism and legal challenges, including a high-profile lawsuit filed by rival and co-founder Elon Musk.

OpenAI is still pushing ahead with plans to change the structure of its for-profit arm to allow more capital-raising to keep pace in the artificial intelligence race.

Below is a timeline of important events related to the startup at the heart of the AI boom, since its inception:

Date	Event
December 11, 2015	Tech executives including Musk and Altman announce the launch of OpenAI, pouring in $1 billion to create the AI firm
2018	OpenAI announces that Musk is leaving its board
2019	OpenAI creates for-profit arm to help raise funds from investors
Nov. 17, 2023	OpenAI board fires CEO Altman and President Greg Brockman quits. Mira Murati named as interim CEO
Nov. 18, 2023	Altman's firing was over a "breakdown in communication between Sam and the board," and not "malfeasance", COO Brad Lightcap says in an internal memo
Nov. 20, 2023	Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says the Windows maker has hired Altman, Brockman and their colleagues to lead a new advanced AI research team
	OpenAI appoints former Twitch boss Emmett Shear as interim CEO. Shear pledges probe into Altman's exit.
	Nearly all OpenAI staff threaten to quit and join Altman at Microsoft, demanding board resign and Altman and Brockman are reinstated
Nov. 21, 2023	OpenAI says Altman will return as CEO with a new initial board. Brockman will also return
Nov. 29, 2023	Altman says Microsoft will take a non-voting, observer position on OpenAI's board
Dec. 13, 2023	Axel Springer partners with OpenAI in a first-of-its-kind deal to deliver summaries of the global news publisher's content
Dec. 27, 2023	The New York Times NYT.N sues OpenAI and Microsoft, accusing them of using the newspaper's articles without permission to train chatbots
Jan. 25, 2024	The FTC orders OpenAI, Microsoft, Alphabet GOOGL.O, Amazon AMZN.O and Anthropic to provide information on recent investments and partnerships as it scrutinizes tech deals
Feb. 16, 2024	OpenAI completes a deal that values it at $80 billion or more, according to media reports
March 1, 2024	Musk sues OpenAI and Altman, saying they abandoned the startup's original mission to develop AI for the benefit of humanity
March 8, 2024	Altman returns to the OpenAI board along with three new directors
May 14, 2024	OpenAI co-founder and chief scientist Ilya Sutskever leaves the company
June 10, 2024	OpenAI hires Sarah Friar, former CEO of social media firm Nextdoor KIND.N, as its first CFO
June 11, 2024	Musk moves to dismiss his lawsuit against OpenAI and Altman
July 10, 2024	Microsoft gives up its board observer seat at OpenAI
August 5, 2024	Musk revives lawsuit against Altman and OpenAI
September 25, 2024	OpenAI's three top technical leaders, including CTO Mira Murati, quit the company
October 2, 2024	OpenAI raises $6.6 billion, valuing the company at $157 billion
December 27, 2024	OpenAI says it plans to revamp its for-profit arm into a public benefit corporation (PBC) to ease the restrictions imposed by its current non-profit parent
January 14, 2025	Private equity veteran Adebayo Ogunlesi, CEO of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), joins OpenAI's board
January 21, 2025	OpenAI plans joint venture with SoftBank and Oracle ORCL.N to build up to $500 billion of new AI data centers in the United States
	Microsoft changes its exclusive deal terms with OpenAI to allow the company to build additional data center capacity, paving the way for the JV
January 22, 2025	OpenAI and SoftBank say they will each commit $19 billion to fund Stargate, a joint venture to develop data centers for AI in the U.S
January 30, 2025	SoftBank Group is in talks to lead a funding round of up to $40 billion in OpenAI at a valuation of $300 billion, including new funds, sources say
February 10, 2025	A consortium led by Musk offers to buy the nonprofit that controls OpenAI for $97.4 billion.
February 11, 2025	OpenAI's board has not received Musk's takeover bid, source says
February 13, 2025	Consortium led by Musk will withdraw its bid for OpenAI's non-profit arm if the startup drops plans to become a for-profit entity, Musk's lawyers say
February 14, 2025	OpenAI rejects Musk's bid for the ChatGPT maker, saying the startup is not for sale and that any future bid would be disingenuous
March 4, 2025	A U.S. judge denies Musk's request for a preliminary injunction to pause OpenAI's transition to a for-profit model but agrees to a fast-track trial in the fall of this year
March 5, 2025	Britain drops its probe into Microsoft's partnership with OpenAI
March 15, 2025	OpenAI and Musk agree to fast-track a trial over for-profit shift
March 28, 2025	OpenAI must transition to a for-profit company by the end of the year to secure the full $40 billion funding led by SoftBank, a source says
April 1, 2025	OpenAI officially announces raising up to $40 billion in a new funding round led by SoftBank Group at a $300 billion valuation
April 4, 2025	Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI will go to a jury trial in spring 2026, federal judge presiding over the case decides
April 9, 2025	OpenAI countersues Musk, citing a pattern of harassment by him
April 15, 2025	OpenAI names members to its newly formed nonprofit commission, which will guide the company's philanthropic efforts
April 16, 2025	OpenAI in discussions to buy AI-assisted coding tool Windsurf for about $3 billion - report
May 5, 2025	OpenAI says it would remain under the control of its nonprofit parent, while pushing ahead with plans to change the structure of its for-profit arm

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