The New York Times Thursday gave readers an inside look at the "fraying" relationship between OpenAI and its investor, partner, and, increasingly, rival: Microsoft. The five-year romance has cooled largely due to financial pressure on OpenAI, limited computing power Microsoft is providing the AI firm, and disagreements over ground rules, among other issues.

Perhaps most interesting is a supposedly proposed clause in the contract OpenAI has with Microsoft: the clause cuts off Microsoft's access to OpenAI's technology if the latter somehow creates so-called artificial general intelligence-meaning, if it ever develops an AI system capable of rivaling human thinking.

TC has asked for comment from OpenAI, but the Times says it exists to help ensure Microsoft can never misuse the technology – by talking with 19 people familiar with the companies' relationship. Thing is, OpenAI's board can reportedly decide when AGI has arrived, and CEO Sam Altman has already said that moment will be somewhat subjective.

As he told this editor early last year, "The closer we get, the harder time I have answering [how far away AGI is] because I think that it's going to be much blurrier and much more of a gradual transition than people think."