Microsoft now lists OpenAI as a competitor in AI and search
|Microsoft has a long and tangled history with OpenAI, having invested a reported $13 billion in the ChatGPT maker as part of a long-term partnership. As part of the deal, Microsoft runs OpenAI’s models across its enterprise and consumer products and is OpenAI’s exclusive cloud provider.However, the tech giant called the startup a “competitor” for the first time in an SEC filing on Tuesday.In Microsoft’s annual 10K, OpenAI joined a long list of competitors in AI, alongside Anthropic, Amazon, and Meta. OpenAI was also listed alongside Google as a competitor to Microsoft in search, thanks to OpenAI’s new SearchGPT feature announced last week.
It’s possible Microsoft is trying to change the narrative on its relationship with OpenAI in light of antitrust concerns — the FTC is currently looking into the relationship, alongside similar cloud provider investments into AI startups. Microsoft recently agreed to give up its board observer seat at the startup — a seat it gained after a kerfuffle last fall when OpenAI’s board briefly fired CEO Sam Altman, prompting Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to offer him and other top execs jobs at Microsoft.However, SEC filings like this are often places where corporations throw out hyper-cautious warnings to investors.