Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup, xAI, alleges that ChatGPT’s maker misappropriated trade secrets.

Elon Musk’s xAI company is suing OpenAI, the owner of ChatGPT, for allegedly stealing trade secrets. Previously, xAI sued former employee Xuechen Li for allegedly stealing confidential information from the company before she joined OpenAI. Following this incident, the company has now targeted OpenAI.

xAI Files Lawsuit

In the latest lawsuit, xAI claims Li’s alleged actions are part of “OpenAI’s widespread and alarming pattern of misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition, and intentional interference in economic relations.” According to xAI’s lawyers, OpenAI hired two xAI employees who stole proprietary information from Elon Musk’s company.

The lawsuit also alleges that Jimmy Fraiture, a former xAI engineer, copied the company’s source code, transferred it to his personal devices, and brought it to OpenAI, where he currently works. It’s also alleged that a senior financial executive brought xAI’s “secret method for rapid data center deployment” to OpenAI, without any intention of fulfilling its legal obligations to xAI.

In a statement to Engadget, OpenAI said, “This new lawsuit is the latest in Musk’s ongoing harassment. We do not tolerate privacy violations and have no interest in other companies’ trade secrets.”

Musk clearly has a complicated history with ChatGPT, the maker, and it’s not the first time a rival AI company has sued OpenAI. Last month, xAI filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and Apple over Grok’s position on the App Store. Musk claimed ChatGPT’s top spot was a “clear antitrust violation.” Musk has also filed numerous lawsuits against OpenAI over OpenAI’s relationship with Microsoft and its decision to become a for-profit company.