The rivalry between Sam Altman and Elon Musk is entering its Apprentice era. Both men have the ambition to redefine how the modern world works—and both are jockeying for President Donald Trump’s blessing to accelerate their plans.

What some are interpreting as Trump putting Musk on a leash may just be a ruse to fool the courts and the public.

Last Tuesday, around twenty American civil servants, part of the Doge (the government efficiency department headed by Elon Musk), jumped ship. "We will not use our technical skills to undermine" the machinery of government: nearly twenty civil servants responsible for reducing public spending have submitted their collective resignation in a letter to the White House,