Elon Musk (r) accused OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and others of turning it into a profit-driven company and deviating from the original mission|World Economic Forum; Gage Skidmore|CC BY-NC-SA 2.0; CC BY-SA 4.0
The closely watched legal battle between Elon Musk and Sam Altman enters a crucial stage today as jurors in Oakland will begin deliberations over Musk’s claims that OpenAI abandoned its nonprofit mission.
During the three-week trial, witnesses, including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever, said they never saw evidence supporting Musk’s allegations.
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Musk accused OpenAI CEO Altman and the company’s president, Greg Brockman, of turning the AI firm into a profit-driven business that mainly benefited executives and investors, including Microsoft.
Musk wants up to $150 billion redirected to OpenAI’s nonprofit foundation and seeks to reverse the company’s 2025 restructuring. The case could disrupt OpenAI’s expected IPO, which may value the company at nearly $1 trillion.
During the trial, Musk said he donated about $38 million to OpenAI but never completed a promised $1 billion contribution. Altman defended the company’s evolution and accused Musk of trying to control OpenAI before leaving in 2018.
The jury’s verdict will only advise the court. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will make the final ruling, which could reshape the global AI industry.