According to a recent report from The Wall Street Journal, Elon Musk allegedly tried to halt a significant artificial intelligence deal between OpenAI and the United Arab Emirates ( UAE ) without including his business, xAI.
One of the largest AI data centers in the world will be built in Abu Dhabi in collaboration with OpenAI and a group of US tech companies, including Oracle, NVIDIA, Cisco, and SoftBank, according to the announcement made last month.
In collaboration with the U.S. government, OpenAI referred to it as “our first OpenAI for Countries partnership ]. ] that expands global AI access and infrastructure. The UAE is seriously investing in AI infrastructure because it wants to expand its economy beyond oil. G42 will provide funding for the development of the Abu Dhabi site and a US-based project of comparable size as part of the agreement.
However, Musk reportedly conspired in secret to obstruct the deal by warning UAE leaders that President Donald Trump doesn’t support it unless xAI was a part of the project.
Musk’s unexpected Middle Eastern travel and alert to UAE leaders were unexpected.
Just before Trump’s mid-May visit of the Gulf nations, Musk learned that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was traveling with the company and that a significant AI offer was in the works. White House leaders claimed that Musk was upset and that he would accompany Trump on the journey by himself and travel to Saudi Arabia.
Musk apparently warned that the offer had” no opportunity” of Trump’s endorsement unless xAI was included during a visit with G42 officials.
Trump and US authorities reviewed the words and made the decision to proceed despite Musk’s concerns. According to the Journal, White House staff members also discussed ways to” quiet Musk down” so that a deal could be made before Trump’s Middle East vacation is over.
Musk and Altman arguing over who they are.
In 2015, Altman and Musk co-founded OpenAI, but Musk left in 2018 due to internal conflicts. Since therefore, the conflict between Musk and Altman has grown personal and public, with some illustrations abounding.
Musk launched xAI in 2023 as a competitor to OpenAI, but it hasn’t already achieved the same level of commercial success.
Finally, Musk brought a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging Altman of violating the organization’s charitable mission. Against Musk, OpenAI filed a counterclaim.
Musk’s anger over being sidelined was also apparent in January 2025 when the Trump administration announced Stargate US, a$ 500 billion AI initiative led by OpenAI and supported by the Trump administration. Musk took to X, his social media platform, to express his shock, the Journal reported.
A$ 97.4 billion bid by Musk and a consortium of investors to gain control of OpenAI was rejected by the company’s board of directors in February 2025.
Social relationships and maneuvers to control strength
Musk has a major impact in Republican lines; he was a close adviser during the campaign and has donated about$ 300 million to Donald Trump. He most recently left the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency work pressure to concentrate on his businesses, X, Tesla, xAI, and SpaceX.
Trump and his supporters finally decided to proceed with the Stargate UAE bargain without including xAI, despite Musk’s social weight. Musk “raised worries about the package and expressed his concerns about justice for all AI companies,” according to a senior White House official.
Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for President Trump and his extraordinary team, praised the final agreement and praised it as “another tremendous package for the American people.”
