Sounding off: Remember the Tesla Roadster? You'd be forgiven if "the fastest production car ever made" slipped your mind, given that Tesla announced it in 2017 and the EV still isn't here. A lot of people who reserved one are sick of waiting, including OpenAI boss Sam Altman, who wants his $50,000 deposit back but isn't having much success.
In a post labeled "a tale of three acts" on X, Altman posted several screenshots documenting his Roadster saga. The first was a confirmation of his $45,000 reservation for the car in July 2018. The next was an email to Tesla he sent yesterday asking for a $50,000 refund. The final image was of the email message bouncing.
For those wondering about Altman's price discrepancy, reserving a Roadster involved a $5,000 payment at checkout and another $45,000 within 10 days – a $50,000 total. However, some reports say customers have only been refunded $45,000 when canceling their orders.
A tale in three acts: pic.twitter.com/ClRZBgT24g
– Sam Altman (@sama) October 30, 2025
When Elon Musk unveiled the $200,000 Roadster in 2017, he promised that the car would be able to go from zero to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds and 0 to 100 mph in 4.2 seconds. Tesla's boss also said it would have a top speed above 250 mph.
The hype increased when car enthusiast and comedian Jay Leno gave the world an early look at the Roadster's real-life performance.
The Roadster was supposed to arrive in 2020, but, as we've seen on many previous occasions, Musk's timeline was overly optimistic.
In 2021, with the auto industry still suffering from the effects of the pandemic, Musk said the Roadster might not ship until 2023. That deadline came and went, and there was still no Roadster. In 2024, Musk said a new prototype would be unveiled by the end of the year – it wasn't – ahead of production starting in 2025.
Altman calling attention to the situation isn't surprising. He has had a very public feud with Musk for several years now. It escalated in 2024 when Musk sued OpenAI and Sam Altman, claiming they'd breached the company's original nonprofit charter by prioritizing profits. This led to OpenAI releasing Musk's emails from his time at the company seemingly showing he supported the move. Musk has also sued OpenAI and Apple over alleged antitrust collusion.
OpenAI countersued Musk this year over claims of a "pattern of harassment."