A New Yorker magazine investigation detailing concerns about Sam Altman’s leadership resurfaced on X feeds on Monday, at the behest of the social media platform’s billionaire owner.
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A post from Ronan Farrow, an investigative reporter, linking to his New Yorker profile of the OpenAI CEO titled “Sam Altman May Control Our Future—Can He Be Trusted?” showed up on the X “For You” page for some users on Monday, three weeks after it was initially posted on April 6.
The post was labeled as “Boosted” and said, “This organic post was boosted by @elonmusk.”
Kelsey Vlamis
It’s unclear how many people were served the post on Monday, but several Business Insider reporters saw it in their feeds.
The profile was boosted as a high-stakes trial between Musk and Altman kicked off in Oakland, California, on Monday. Altman made an unexpected appearance in court as jury selection began. Musk was not in attendance.
Musk sued Altman and OpenAI in 2024, alleging he was deceived when he cofounded the company in 2015 and invested tens of millions of dollars, only for it to abandon its mission as a public benefit nonprofit. The case could cost billions for OpenAI, which is preparing for an IPO.
Musk went after Altman directly on Monday in a critical post on X.
“Scam Altman and Greg Stockman stole a charity. Full stop,” he wrote, referring to Altman and OpenAI’s president, who is also named in the lawsuit.
OpenAI said Monday the lawsuit was “a baseless and jealous bid to derail a competitor.”
X did not respond to a request for comment or questions about the “boosted” feature, including how it works and how it compares to an advertising post, which is typically labeled “Ad.”
The New Yorker declined to comment.
