AI Leaders Weekly Briefing

May 8, 2026

Internal OpenAI records go public in a major trial as the company launches GPT-5.5 and xAI scales its Grok ecosystem and more.

• Testimony in the Musk v. Altman trial has offered a rare behind-the-scenes look at OpenAI, revealing internal texts about Sam Altman's 2023 ouster, accusations of dishonesty regarding safety standards, and details of a near-merger with Anthropic. ^{123456789101112131415161718192021222324}
• OpenAI launched its GPT-5.5 model series, making GPT-5.5 Instant the default for all ChatGPT users while introducing GPT-5.5-Cyber for security professionals and three new real-time voice models for developers. ^{252627282930313233}
• Anthropic expanded its operational capacity through a compute partnership with SpaceX and introduced new 'Natural Language Autoencoders' to help interpret the internal decision-making processes of its Claude models. ^{34353637383940}
• OpenAI modified its strategic partnership with Microsoft to end exclusivity, subsequently making its models available on AWS Bedrock and partnering with multiple chipmakers on a new Ethernet-based training protocol. ^4142434445
• ElevenLabs reported surpassing $500 million in annual recurring revenue following a Series D funding round and announced significant price reductions for its voice and agentic API services. ^4647484950
• Elon Musk's xAI launched the Grok Imagine Quality Mode API for photorealistic image generation and integrated 'Connectors' for productivity tools like Google Workspace and Outlook into the Grok web interface. ⁵¹⁵²⁵³
• Other notable developments include OpenAI's expansion into digital advertising, a report from Canadian regulators finding OpenAI violated privacy laws during early ChatGPT development, and DeepMind's new AI testing partnership with the developers of EVE Online. ^{545556575859606162}

Sources

1. China Daily · May 8 AI risks loom over Musk-OpenAI trial
2. Yahoo · May 7 Sam Altman had a bad day in court
3. Business Insider · May 7 The OpenAI trial is exposing a brutal truth about workplace texts
4. Business Insider · May 7 'Still don't want me?' — trial reveals Sam Altman's frantic texts after 2023 OpenAI ouster
5. Techmeme · May 6 Altman: Mira Murati testifies that Sam Altman lied to her about the safety standards for a new OpenAI model and that he made her work more difficult
6. TechCrunch · May 6 How Elon Musk left OpenAI, according to Greg Brockman
7. Marketplace · May 7 Elon Musk is in court arguing that OpenAI abandoned its nonprofit model
8. The Verge · May 6 Zilis says she had concerns about Altman that she raised with the board of OpenAI
9. Reuters · May 6 In OpenAI trial, former technology chief says Altman sowed 'chaos,' distrust among top executives
10. The Wall Street Journal · May 6 Elon Musk’s Romantic Partner Testifies About Her Role on OpenAI’s Board
11. The Guardian · May 6 Mother of Elon Musk's children testifies in lawsuit against OpenAI
12. Business Insider · May 6 The 6 biggest revelations from Greg Brockman's second day of testimony in the OpenAI showdown
13. Law360 · May 6 Musk Sought Control Of OpenAI To Fund Mars City, Jury Told - Law360
14. Seeking Alpha · May 5 Brockman says OpenAI leadership had concerns about Musk's AI knowledge
15. BBC · May 5 'I thought he was going to hit me' OpenAI co-founder says of Musk
16. The Guardian · May 5 OpenAI president's 'deeply personal' diary becomes focus in Musk's case against Altman
17. Associated Press · May 7 Worries about AI s risks to humanity loom over the trial pitting Musk against OpenAI s leaders
18. WIRED · May 6 Elon Musk's Last-Ditch Effort to Control OpenAI: Recruit Sam Altman to Tesla
19. Digit · May 5 Elon Musk vs OpenAI: Greg Brockman answered every question in court but skipped this one
20. Digit · May 5 OpenAI says Elon Musk sent threatening texts before trial after failed settlement bid
21. NBC News · May 4 You just happen to be $30 billion richer? : OpenAI co-founder grilled at Musk trial
22. The New York Times · May 4 Elon Musk's Lawyers Ask OpenAI's Brockman Why He Is Worth $30 Billion
23. Yahoo Finance · May 4 OpenAI is 'exploring' an IPO, Greg Brockman says at Elon Musk trial
24. WIRED · May 4 Greg Brockman Defends $30B OpenAI Stake: ‘Blood, Sweat, and Tears’
25. Techmeme · May 8 OpenAI is rolling out GPT-5.5-Cyber, a security-focused variant of the model, in a limited preview capacity to vetted cybersecurity teams
26. Axios · May 7 OpenAI makes its Mythos rival more widely available to cyber defenders
27. Techmeme · May 7 OpenAI launches three voice models in the API: GPT-Realtime-2 with GPT-5-class reasoning, GPT-Realtime-Whisper for transcription, and GPT-Realtime-Translate
28. OpenAI · Announcement · May 7 OpenAI introduces Trusted Access for Cyber
29. OpenAI · Announcement · May 7 OpenAI introduces three new realtime voice models
30. OpenAI · LinkedIn post · May 5 OpenAI releases ChatGPT add-on for Excel and Google Sheets
31. Techmeme · May 5 OpenAI says GPT-5.5 Instant produces 52.5% fewer hallucinated claims “on high-stakes prompts covering areas like medicine, law, and finance”
32. OpenAI · Announcement · May 5 OpenAI updates ChatGPT to GPT-5.5 Instant
33. OpenAI · Report · May 5 OpenAI releases GPT-5.5 Instant System Card
34. Anthropic · Announcement · May 7 Anthropic donates its open-source Petri tool
35. Anthropic · Announcement · May 7 Anthropic introduces Natural Language Autoencoders
36. Anthropic · Announcement · May 7 Anthropic shares The Anthropic Institute's research agenda
37. Anthropic · Announcement · May 6 Anthropic announces higher Claude limits and SpaceX compute deal
38. Anthropic · Announcement · May 6 Anthropic announces updates to Claude Managed Agents
39. heise online · May 7 Anthropic increases Claude usage for AI subscribers through SpaceX cooperation
40. Anthropic · Announcement · May 5 Anthropic releases agent templates for financial services
41. SDxCentral · May 6 OpenAI simplifies large AI training networks with Ethernet-based protocol
42. Techmeme · May 6 OpenAI partners with Microsoft, AMD, Broadcom, Nvidia, and Intel researchers to detail the Multipath Reliable Connection (MRC) protocol to help scale compute
43. Forbes · May 6 OpenAI Brings GPT-5.5 To AWS Bedrock As Microsoft Exclusive Era Ends
44. OpenAI · Announcement · May 5 OpenAI partners to develop MRC protocol
45. Campus Technology · May 4 Microsoft and OpenAI Rework Alliance, Loosening Exclusive Ties
46. ElevenLabs · LinkedIn post · May 7 ElevenLabs reduces ElevenAPI and ElevenAgents pricing
47. ElevenLabs · Announcement · May 7 ElevenLabs expands operations in Australia and New Zealand
48. ElevenLabs · LinkedIn post · May 6 ElevenLabs introduces new modalities for ElevenAgents
49. ElevenLabs · Announcement · May 5 ElevenLabs surpasses $500M ARR
50. ElevenLabs · LinkedIn post · May 4 ElevenLabs powers Agentic Thwaites Glacier
51. SpaceXSI · Announcement · May 6 xAI launches Connectors on Grok Web
52. SpaceXSI · Announcement · May 6 xAI launches Grok Imagine Quality Mode API
53. SpaceXSI · LinkedIn post · May 5 xAI launches Grok 4.3 on API
54. DeepMind · Announcement · May 7 DeepMind updates AlphaEvolve achievements
55. The Globe and Mail · May 6 OpenAI violated Canadian privacy laws in developing first ChatGPT model, probe finds
56. DeepMind · LinkedIn post · May 6 DeepMind teams up with EVE Online developers
57. Yahoo Finance · May 7 OpenAI Aggressively Expands Ads Pilot to More Countries
58. National Observer · May 6 Report on OpenAI expected from the federal and provincial privacy watchdogs today
59. PPC Land · May 6 Pacvue joins OpenAI's ChatGPT ad pilot with Kepler as first agency
60. OpenAI · Announcement · May 6 OpenAI introduces ChatGPT Futures Class of 2026
61. Techmeme · May 5 OpenAI rolls out a beta version of its new Ads Manager tool to advertisers in the US, making it easier for SMBs to buy ChatGPT ads on a cost-per-click basis
62. OpenAI · Announcement · May 5 OpenAI expands ChatGPT ads buying options