The Awkward Partnership Leading the AI Boom

Unconventional arrangement between Microsoft and OpenAI sometimes causes conflict

Photo Illustration by Emil Lendof/The Wall Street Journal; iStock

Microsoft MSFT 1.14%increase; green up pointing triangle and OpenAI’s partnership is one of the hottest tie-ups in tech right now. The relationship has also produced conflict and confusion behind the scenes, according to people familiar with the matter.

Microsoft invested billions to get early access to the generative artificial intelligence technology of much smaller OpenAI, a forerunner in the field. But it specifically invested only 49%, a setup that helps the arrangement avoid antitrust scrutiny. 

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