OpenAI Defends Subpoena to AI Safety Nonprofit Encode Amidst Musk Legal Battle

OpenAI has publicly defended its decision to issue a subpoena to Encode, a small AI policy nonprofit, and its General Counsel, Nathan Calvin, amidst an ongoing lawsuit with Elon Musk. The company asserts the subpoena is a standard legal procedure aimed at uncovering the full context of Encode's involvement and funding, particularly after the organization filed an amicus brief supporting Musk's claims against OpenAI.

Jason Kwon, OpenAI's Chief Strategy Officer, stated that the company is "actively defending against Elon in a lawsuit where he is trying to damage OpenAI for his own financial benefit." He questioned Encode's motivations, noting that its "funding has not been fully disclosed," which "raises legitimate questions about what is going on" when a safety policy organization sides with a party adverse to OpenAI. The subpoena sought transparency regarding Encode's potential collaboration with "third parties who have a commercial competitive interest adverse to OpenAI."

Encode, a three-person nonprofit, vehemently denies any financial ties to Elon Musk. Nathan Calvin, General Counsel for Encode, publicly stated, "Elon isn't involved with Encode. Elon wasn't behind SB 53. He doesn't fund us, and we've never spoken to him." Calvin described being served the subpoena at his home by a sheriff's deputy, viewing it as an intimidation tactic by OpenAI to silence critics, especially concerning California's SB53 AI transparency law, which Encode supported.

The subpoena also requested Calvin's private communications regarding SB53, a bill designed to create transparency rules and whistleblower protections for large AI companies. While OpenAI stated it provided comments for harmonization on SB53 and supports other AI safety initiatives, Encode alleges OpenAI lobbied to weaken the bill. Reports indicate that a magistrate judge has previously "chastised OpenAI more broadly for their behavior in the discovery process" in its case against Musk.

The legal dispute unfolds within the larger context of Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI, where he alleges the company abandoned its founding non-profit mission. OpenAI has countered, accusing Musk of engaging in "bad-faith tactics" to slow its progress and benefit his own AI ventures. This incident highlights the growing tensions and scrutiny surrounding funding, advocacy, and regulatory influence within the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence industry.