A past engineer at Elon Musk’s xAI has initiated legal action against the company and its parent SpaceX, alleging he was terminated for expressing worries regarding AI safety.

Devin Kim, who departed xAI in September 2025, lodged the lawsuit in a California state court on Tuesday. The filing occurs just days before SpaceX is poised to enter the public markets, in what is anticipated to be the largest IPO ever.

As per the lawsuit, which TechCrunch has reviewed, Kim emerged as a leading advocate for AI safety during his time working on Grok, xAI’s AI chatbot. He allegedly voiced numerous complaints regarding xAI’s neglect of safety during Grok’s development, a product that has subsequently faced criticism for various safety and behavioral problems. Notably, Kim was apprehensive about the potential for Grok to incite discrimination and facilitate the dissemination of information concerning weapons of mass destruction.

“Grok, of course, validated Mr. Kim’s concerns by engaging in remarkable instances of online hatred and vitriol, with the model comparing itself to Hitler (‘MechaHitler’),” the lawsuit states. “In the aftermath of the Hitler incident, Mr. Kim worked to reassess Grok’s political bias and discriminatory behavior.”

A few months following Kim’s departure from xAI, Grok garnered attention once more when the chatbot was used to inundate X — Musk’s social media platform that also falls under the xAI umbrella — with nonconsensual sexual content.

The lawsuit further characterizes Kim as a whistleblower who was alarmed by xAI’s purported negligence regarding AI safety as “illegal” in sectors such as internet regulation, consumer defense, and unfair business practices, as well as arms and explosives regulation, among others. 

xAI and SpaceX did not immediately respond to inquiries for comment. 

Kim’s emphasis on AI safety predates his tenure at xAI. While at Scale AI, Kim was involved in early safety AI initiatives, including leading a project that generated training data for AI systems to identify harmful content and adhere to governance regulations. Recently, the nonprofit Center for AI Safety, which concentrates on AI risks, appointed Kim as its president.

Interestingly, the lawsuit does not implicate Musk himself regarding safety deficiencies. Instead, Kim’s attorneys describe Musk as having instructed xAI to comply with the law and establish suitable safety and testing protocols. The lawsuit targets Kim’s supervisor, xAI co-founder Jimmy Ba — who exited the company earlier this year — indicating that Ba disregarded Musk’s directives and retaliated against Kim for advocating for safeguards, in an attempt to “silence his repeated concerns about AI safety and biases.”

The lawsuit depicts Ba as someone who vehemently opposed AI safety protocols, allegedly telling Kim at one time “AI will kill us all anyway,” and who was instead motivated by a mission to make xAI the first to achieve superintelligence. 

“In one instance in or around August 2025, Mr. Ba tried to hinder EU safety regulations during the launch of Grok Code 1, misrepresenting facets of the model to avoid legally mandated testing,” the complaint states. “Mr. Ba suggested that he would prefer to release an unsafe model over a poorly performing one. Mr. Musk eventually had to step in.”

According to the lawsuit, Kim planned to present his findings during the week of September 15, 2025, but Ba summoned him to a meeting and informed him they should “go [their] separate ways” without providing an adequate explanation. 

TechCrunch has reached out to Ba for commentary. 

Kim is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, in addition to a declaratory judgment that xAI and SpaceX’s actions were unlawful.

Initially Tesla, followed by Ford, and now GM — it seems that every vehicle manufacturer is eager to enter the energy storage sector.

This enthusiasm is understandable. While sales of electric vehicles have plateaued in the U.S., the demand for large, stationary batteries has doubled over the past two years and shows no sign of slowing down.

Even with the reduction of incentives in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the Solar Energy Industries Association predicts annual installations will surpass 110 GWh by 2030, nearly doubling current figures.

“There’s immense potential for this market,” Kurt Kelty, vice president of battery and sustainability at GM, shared with TechCrunch. 

GM has experimented with energy storage before, but on Tuesday, it made a significant move by introducing a new sodium-ion battery chemistry targeting the core of the market.

The rapidly growing energy storage sector is being propelled by the intersection of three trends. The most apparent is the rise of data centers built to support AI, with energy demand from data centers expected to nearly triple by the decade’s end. Concurrently, numerous sectors of the economy, including transportation, manufacturing, and HVAC, are transitioning to electric systems. 

“Data centers contribute significantly to this growth, but even without them, the market was already gaining momentum,” Kelty remarked.

It’s not only automobile manufacturers that are venturing into energy storage. Startups have been securing substantial funding to capture a share of the market. Base Power raised $1 billion in Series C funding in October to extend operations beyond Texas, while Lunar Energy amassed $232 million to provide batteries to homeowners. Other companies, such as Lightship, are making adjustments; the electric RV producer is now offering a mobile battery solution for job sites and locations requiring temporary power.

Currently, Tesla dominates the energy storage market. Last year, of the 57 gigawatt-hours installed, Tesla accounted for 82% of the installations. Its annual revenue from energy generation and storage has doubled since 2023, chiefly due to the growth of Megapack and Powerwall installations. Tesla’s gross profits for this segment are around 30%, roughly double what it earns from selling electric vehicles and at least three times greater than typical automaker margins. GM’s gross margin over the past 15 years has been just above 11%.

However, in light of the market’s potential, GM isn’t hurrying to join in. Instead, its primary product, the sodium-ion cells, won’t be available until later in the decade. “We intend to develop a family of cells suitable for this market,” Kelty noted.

Kelty and his team highlight the advantages of sodium-ion as justification for their patience: The materials are inexpensive and plentiful, active cooling systems are unnecessary, and these cells can endure many more charge-discharge cycles compared to lithium-ion batteries. 

Moreover, unlike other battery chemistries, China hasn’t monopolized the materials needed for sodium-ion batteries. Nearly all cobalt globally is processed by Chinese companies, for instance.

“This provides us a pathway to supply-chain resilience and low-cost materials,” Andy Oury, business planning manager at GM, informed TechCrunch. “Sodium-ion is still very much in its early stages, with plenty of opportunities to grow the supply chain anywhere there’s investment.”

GM could have opted for an easier route by simply repackaging the lithium-ion cells it produces in its gigafactories, as Tesla and Ford have. Nevertheless, the automaker remains optimistic about the future of electric vehicles and doesn’t want to divert its lithium-ion production capacity for fear of being unprepared if the EV market experiences a resurgence.

“It’s one thing to manufacture cells when there’s excess capacity,” Oury stated. “It’s a different challenge when we shift back to a high-growth environment, and every new battery required needs a new manufacturing facility.”

Such a resurgence could be partially influenced by GM. The company is developing a completely new battery chemistry, lithium-manganese-rich (LMR), expected to launch in 2028. LMR aims to provide most of today’s range while reducing new EV costs by approximately 10%. This would bring electric vehicles closer to being on par with fossil fuel cars, addressing one of the major barriers to adoption. 

Following LMR, sodium-ion could be another chemistry that shakes up the automotive sector. Chinese manufacturers have already begun exploring this option. EVs using sodium-ion batteries are heavier and have a shorter range, but they are more affordable and less likely to catch fire. Additionally, they demonstrate the potential for rapid charging. Collectively, these features create an appealing option for lower-cost electric vehicles.

“Is this the right strategy for EVs in the long term? That’s still up for debate,” Kelty commented. “It does give us the advantage that if we choose to pursue that direction, it will be quite straightforward for us since we are already conducting extensive research in this area. We’re not dismissing it.”

However, the risk in proceeding more cautiously than competitors is that the AI bubble may burst, data center developments could slow, and GM might miss the opportunity. Paul Menson, director of energy storage commercialization at GM, believes that investing in sodium-ion will yield dividends even in the event of a downturn. “No market grows infinitely forever,” he remarked. “That’s why having the best product is crucial. If you have the top product, market contractions won’t affect you as significantly.”

Nevertheless, Kelty feels a sense of urgency. “We are actively investigating other methods to enter the market more swiftly,” he said. “We are definitely aiming to move as quickly as possible.”

A recent analysis by cybersecurity leader CrowdStrike revealed that North Korean cybercriminals masquerading as remote IT professionals and online job seekers constituted nearly half of all recorded “hands-on-keyboard” breaches at U.S. tech firms in the past year.

The firm’s newest annual overview of the cybersecurity environment underlines the escalating menace from North Korean agents, who have emerged as a major contributor to cyber incidents throughout the tech sector. Hackers linked to the Kim Jong Un government routinely aim at businesses and developers with plots designed to procure information and cryptocurrency to support Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal, which is prohibited under international regulations.

CrowdStrike noted that within the timeframe detailed in the report — from April 2025 to May 2026 — the North Korean hacking coalition dubbed “Famous Chollima” was responsible for 47% of all state-sponsored efforts directed at the tech industry.

The cybersecurity firm monitors hands-on-keyboard infiltrations because they typically involve actual human cybercriminals executing harmful and stealthy cyber operations, unlike automated malware manageable by conventional security measures. These assaults usually initiate with stolen credentials, followed by the exploitation of valid tools already integrated into the target’s systems to maintain ongoing access.

Famous Chollima is recognized for impersonating tech professionals, including developers, coders, and IT personnel, applying for remote positions at U.S., European, and Asian tech firms under false identities. To achieve this, the hackers utilize AI to create live deepfake images to mimic the faces of real individuals, complemented by counterfeit identity documents like stolen passports and driving licenses to pose as American or other foreign citizens. This method is necessary due to the extensive sanctions imposed on North Korea by Western nations and the United Nations for its persistent advancements in nuclear weaponry. 

Once infiltrated, the hackers also receive compensation from the companies they breach, which is redirected to the North Korean government, all while pilfering intellectual property and other confidential corporate data. That pilfered information is often weaponized; when the operatives are ultimately apprehended, they frequently threaten to reveal what they have stolen unless the organization complies with their ransom demands.

The hackers also focus on blockchain developers with plans to acquire substantial amounts of cryptocurrency, which the Kim regime uses to bypass its extensive limitations regarding the Western financial system. North Korea has amassed billions of dollars in illicit cryptocurrency over the years, including approximately $2 billion in 2025 alone.

Netflix is enhancing its focus on mobile and gaming, as highlighted during the company’s recent APAC Product Innovation Showcase. 

At the event, Netflix detailed plans to broaden its updated mobile experience to more markets across the Asia-Pacific region, while simultaneously advancing its gaming initiatives through the ongoing launch of Netflix Playground, a specialized area for children’s games.

Netflix is also working to widen the availability of its revamped mobile app. Following the rollout of the improved experience in Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, India, and Malaysia earlier this year, Netflix intends to introduce it in South Korea and Japan in July, with more Asia-Pacific markets to follow.

An essential feature of the redesign is “Clips,” Netflix’s response to the rising trend of short-form video. The vertical video feed enables users to explore brief content from Netflix’s extensive library, providing quick entertainment during moments when viewers might not be able to engage with a full episode or movie.

Now Netflix is elevating the concept even further. The company disclosed plans to experiment with themed Clip collections, which would categorize short videos according to specific moods, genres, and interests. These curated collections could encompass anything from notable reality TV highlights to behind-the-scenes content and podcast snippets.

In addition to streaming, Netflix is continuing to pour resources into gaming. The company announced the expansion of Netflix Playground, its gaming hub tailored specifically for kids. The newest update will center around “KPop Demon Hunters,” the popular animated musical that has rapidly emerged as one of Netflix’s key family titles.

The upcoming experience will debut with six mini-games, enabling fans to engage directly with characters and narrative elements from the movie. This timing aligns well, as “KPop Demon Hunters” amassed over 518 million views within its first six months, solidifying its place as one of Netflix’s major animated achievements. Netflix appears to be aiming to leverage viewer enthusiasm while providing families with more incentives to remain on its platform.

Netflix Playground initially launched in April in regions including the U.S., Canada, and the U.K., indicating the company’s ambition to scale the concept globally.