Yes—OpenAI subpoenaed Meta about Musk’s $97.4B bid. Meta objected. The twist: filings say Musk asked Zuckerberg about financing.

If that sounds like a plot twist, it is. While Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg were trading jabs in public—including a never‑held “cage match”—court filings say Musk privately talked to Zuckerberg about backing his attempt to buy OpenAI. Now OpenAI wants Meta’s documents. Meta says: ask Musk, not us.

The headline revelation

• According to a joint discovery letter in federal court, OpenAI served Meta with a Rule 45 subpoena on June 18, 2025, seeking documents about:
  • OpenAI’s restructuring and recapitalization, and
  • “any actual or contemplated bid to acquire OpenAI,” including communications with Mark Zuckerberg.
  • Source: court filing (Musk et al. v. Altman et al., No. 4:24‑cv‑04722‑YGR) PDF

Meta objected on July 2, arguing the requests are irrelevant and that OpenAI should obtain any such records from Musk or xAI directly. Reuters’ summary mirrors Meta’s position.
Sources: Court filing, Reuters

How we got here: the $97.4B “bid” and OpenAI’s response

• In February 2025, Musk led a $97.4 billion effort to acquire OpenAI. OpenAI rejected it, calling the much‑publicized move “not a bid at all.”
  Sources: Washington Post, CNBC

• Sam Altman publicly dismissed the idea. “It’s ridiculous … the company is not for sale,” he said on Feb. 11, 2025.
  Sources: MarketScreener/Reuters, Axios

• In court, OpenAI has labeled the effort a “sham bid” tied to what it calls an unlawful harassment campaign—claims a judge recently allowed to proceed. A jury trial is set for spring 2026.
  Sources: CNBC, FindLaw docket summary, Court docket PDF

What OpenAI says about Zuckerberg’s role—and what Meta says back

• The filing and Reuters’ report state Musk identified Zuckerberg as someone he spoke to about “potential financing arrangements or investments” for the bid. Neither Zuckerberg nor Meta signed the letter of intent.
  Sources: Reuters, Court filing

• Meta’s stance: its internal communications aren’t relevant to Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI and, in any case, OpenAI should get documents from Musk/xAI.
  Sources: Court filing, Reuters

Key corrections and context

• Bold correction: This fight is about discovery, not about changing OpenAI’s business model.
  The immediate court decision is whether Meta must produce documents. Any “impact” on OpenAI’s structure is speculative.
  Source: Court filing

• Bold correction: There’s no evidence of a Musk–Zuckerberg “truce” or collaboration beyond conversations about possible financing.
  Filings explicitly note Meta/Zuckerberg did not join the bid.
  Sources: Reuters, Court filing

• Verified: OpenAI did subpoena Meta—and Meta objected.
  That’s on the record in a joint discovery letter before Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers.
  Source: Court filing

The bigger stage: why Meta’s name keeps coming up

While Meta didn’t back the bid, it is very much in the AI arms race:

• Meta agreed to invest about $14.3 billion in Scale AI and recruit its CEO, Alexandr Wang, as part of a deal that leaves Scale independent and gives Meta a 49% stake.
  Sources: Washington Post/AP, ABC News, CNBC, Scale

• It’s been recruiting aggressively, including from OpenAI. Some eye‑popping compensation figures have been reported; Meta disputes that $100M+ offers are typical, though very large packages for select leaders are acknowledged.
  Sources: Wired, TechCrunch

That’s the competitive backdrop to this subpoena fight.

What’s verified vs. what’s still unclear

Verified

• OpenAI subpoenaed Meta on June 18, 2025; Meta objected July 2.
• Musk led a $97.4B effort to buy OpenAI; OpenAI rejected it and calls it a “sham bid.”
• Musk spoke with Zuckerberg about possible financing; Meta/Zuckerberg did not join the bid.
• The case (Musk v. Altman/OpenAI) is before Judge Rogers; jury trial is scheduled for spring 2026.
  Sources embedded above

Unclear or needs more evidence

• Whether Meta’s internal discussions, if produced, would materially advance OpenAI’s “sham bid” narrative.
• The full contents of Musk–Zuckerberg communications; Meta hasn’t turned over documents and is fighting the subpoena.
• Any near‑term “impact” on OpenAI’s business model stemming from this specific discovery dispute.
  Source: Court filing

The irony that sells the story

Remember the cage match that never happened? In 2023, Zuckerberg publicly said “it’s time to move on,” and the bout fizzled.
Sources: CNBC, CNN

Behind the scenes, though, Musk later asked the same rival about helping finance a $97.4B takeover attempt of OpenAI, the lab Musk co‑founded and now sues for allegedly betraying its nonprofit mission. OpenAI calls the bid a stunt; Musk says OpenAI strayed from its founding ideals. The judge will first decide something far less dramatic: whether Meta must hand over its emails.

Why this matters—and what to watch next

• Short term: This is a discovery fight, not a referendum on OpenAI’s “capped‑profit” model. A ruling compelling Meta to produce documents could illuminate Musk’s motivations and outreach, but it won’t, by itself, change OpenAI’s structure.
• Medium term: If new documents surface, they could affect how a jury views OpenAI’s “sham bid” and “harassment” claims when the case goes to trial in 2026.
• Long term: The case underscores how the future of AI isn’t just written in code—it’s shaped in courtrooms and boardrooms, where rivals sometimes talk, even as they spar in public.

If you want the exact subpoena requests (the ones targeting “any actual or contemplated bid to acquire OpenAI”), they’re in the June 18 letter attached to the joint filing here: courtlistener.com PDF

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Sources cited:

• Court filing (Joint discovery letter, N.D. Cal.): https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.433688/gov.uscourts.cand.433688.230.0.pdf
• Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/musk-sought-zuckerberg-help-openai-bid-court-filing-shows-2025-08-22/
• Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/02/10/elon-musk-openai-bid-valuation/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• CNBC: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/02/14/openai-rejects-musks-takeover-offer-says-it-wasnt-a-bid-at-all.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• FindLaw docket summary: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-dis-crt-n-d-cal/117603877.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• Axios: https://www.axios.com/2025/02/11/openai-altman-musk-offer
• Meta–Scale AI coverage: Washington Post/AP, ABC News, CNBC, Scale’s blog (links above)
• Recruiting reports: Wired, TechCrunch (links above)
• Cage match coverage: CNBC, CNN (links above)