President Trump's $500 billion AI infrastructure project, dubbed Stargate, rustled plenty of feathers when it was announced this week — including reigniting a bitter feud between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and multi-hyphenate billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk.

Earlier this week, Altman proudly voiced his support for the initiative at the announcement, while flanked by Trump in the Oval Office. OpenAI is committing $19 billion to fund it.

But Musk, who seemingly felt left out — and possibly jealous of Trump proudly and lovingly watching Altman stand behind the podium — lashed out at Altman, accusing OpenAI of not being able to come up with their share.

"They don't actually have the money," he tweeted just hours after the project was announced.

Altman didn't take long to fight back, accusing Musk of being "wrong, as you surely know."

Trump, meanwhile, appears completely unfazed by the billionaires squabbling, telling reporters in the Oval Office that Musk "hates one of the people in the deal," as quoted by The Hill.

After being asked if he was bothered by Musk bashing the deal, he had a simple answer.

"No, it doesn’t," he said. "The people in the deal are very, very smart people," he continued. "But Elon, one of the people in the deal he happens to hate, but I have certain hatreds of people too."

What he exactly meant by "certain hatreds of people" could be interpreted in eyebrow-raising ways. Notably, Trump's comments came after Musk was rightfully excoriated worldwide for performing not one but two Nazi salutes during the president's post-inauguration celebration.

The most straightforward reading of Trump's comments, judging by the context of the discussion, is that Musk hates Altman, specifically. But the fact that Altman is Jewish shrouds Trump's characteristically vague ramblings in a much darker light. Was Trump insinuating that he and Musk harbor prejudices against certain groups?

Or would that be reading too much into Trump's utterances? Does Trump even know that Altman is Jewish?

Musk has since attempted to refute that his gesture was really a Nazi salute — but then tweeted a barrage of Holocaust jokes that prompted even some of his most ardent defenders to withdraw their support.

Throughout it all, astonishingly, Musk has stopped short of outright denying that he did perform a Hitlergruss.

His feud with Altman dates back to the earliest days of OpenAI, a nonprofit they cofounded in 2015. In 2019 Musk quit in anger, citing disagreements over the group's direction.

There are other reasons why Musk may feel left out. The entrepreneur launched his own AI company, xAI, which was passed over by Stargate.

Whether any of this drama actually registered in Trump's brain remains mysterious. Does the president even care about one of his most loyal supporters battling it out with one of the most influential people in the AI industry?

The Trump administration has already made it abundantly clear that loyalty to the United States' new leader is a top priority. Whether Musk's attempts to discredit the president's shiny new AI deal will land on Trump's naughty list remains to be seen.

What Trump may not realize is Musk's position of considerable power and influence.

"It’s clear he has abused the proximity to the president," an unnamed Trump ally in the White House told Politico. "The problem is the president doesn’t have any leverage over him and Elon gives zero fucks."

The latest disagreement could fuel a growing rift between the richest man and one of the most powerful people in the world. It certainly wouldn't be the first time the two sparred; Trump and Musk have had a rocky relationship in the past, to say the least.

"When Musk came to the White House asking me for help on all of his many subsidized projects, whether it's electric cars that don't drive long enough, driverless cars that crash, or rocket ships to nowhere, without which subsidies he'd be worthless," Trump wrote in a 2022 post on his platform Truth Social, "and telling me how he was a big Trump fan and Republican, I could have said, 'drop to your knees and beg,' and he would have done it…"

More on the kerfuffle: Sam Altman Blasts Elon Musk for Defying Donald Trump's AI Deal


Share This Article