TLDR
- Elon Musk mocked Sam Altman on X, calling him a scammer after Apple sued OpenAI
- Apple filed a federal lawsuit accusing OpenAI of trade secret theft linked to future hardware
- The lawsuit names former Apple employees Tang Tan and Chang Liu
- Altman fired back, suggesting Musk’s attacks prove GPT-5.6 Sol is the world’s best model
- A U.S. judge previously dismissed Musk’s own trade secret lawsuit against OpenAI
Elon Musk and Sam Altman are trading public insults again. This time, Apple’s federal lawsuit against OpenAI gave Musk fresh ammunition to attack his longtime rival.
Musk reshared a post on X featuring an old quote from Altman, adding: “He takes scamming to a whole new level.” He also joked that Altman might need a parole officer’s approval to visit a SpaceX data centre, referencing the Apple lawsuit directly.
homeboy you're the one sellling public market investors on short-term space datacenters https://t.co/wTYSA4q3Qx
— Sam Altman (@sama) July 11, 2026
Altman did not stay quiet. He referred to Musk as “homeboy” and accused him of “selling public market investors on short-term space datacentres,” a dig at SpaceX’s IPO pitch around orbital data centres.
The exchange escalated. Musk posted a screenshot of Altman claiming he had no equity in OpenAI and was working for “love.” Musk replied: “By ‘this’ he means scamming,” and said Altman “might literally love scamming more than any human alive.”
Altman ended the back-and-forth with a theory. He claimed Musk’s renewed obsession with him was proof that OpenAI’s new GPT-5.6 Sol model was the best in the world. GPT-5.6 models, including Sol, Terra, and Luna, were released publicly on Thursday after the US lifted restrictions.
Why Apple Is Suing OpenAI
Apple filed a federal lawsuit accusing OpenAI of trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract. The complaint centres on OpenAI’s hiring practices and hardware ambitions.
The suit names Tang Tan, OpenAI’s chief hardware officer and former Apple VP of product design, who worked on the iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods. It also names Chang Liu, another former Apple employee.
Apple claims OpenAI encouraged job candidates to bring confidential documents, hardware components, blueprints, and unreleased materials to interviews. The company also alleges OpenAI used proprietary information to contact Apple’s manufacturing suppliers.
Apple is seeking to stop any use of its trade secrets, recover the confidential material, and preserve related evidence.
OpenAI denied all allegations. A spokesperson said: “We have no interest in other companies’ trade secrets. We remain focused on building innovative technology that empowers people everywhere.”
A Long-Running Rivalry
Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015, helped fund it in its early years, and left in 2018 after disagreements over its direction. He later sued OpenAI, Altman, and Greg Brockman over the company’s shift from its non-profit roots.
That case went to trial this year. A jury ruled against Musk on a statute of limitations issue, and he said he would appeal.
Last month, a U.S. federal judge also dismissed Musk’s separate trade secret lawsuit involving OpenAI, finding insufficient evidence that OpenAI had improperly acquired secrets tied to his Grok technology.
SpaceX’s AI division recently released Grok 4.5, widely seen as a move to compete with OpenAI’s latest GPT-5.6 release.
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