OpenAI trial pitting Elon Musk against Sam Altman kicks off as a high-stakes legal battle unfolds over the future and founding principles of the AI company.
A high-stakes trial over OpenAI’s future began on Tuesday, with lawyers disputing whether Elon Musk committed to ensuring AI benefits society or saw the company as a vehicle to amass personal power.
Musk, the world’s richest person, is suing OpenAI, its Chief Executive Sam Altman and its President Greg Brockman, saying they betrayed him and the public by abandoning the ChatGPT maker’s mission to be a benevolent steward of AI for humanity, and transforming the nonprofit into a profit-seeking juggernaut.
Bill Savitt, a lawyer for OpenAI and Altman, said it was Musk who saw dollar signs as he helped finance OpenAI’s early growth and pushed it to become a for-profit business, one he might eventually lead as CEO.
Savitt said Musk wanted “the keys to the kingdom” and sued after failing, later launching xAI in 2023.
“What he cares about is Elon Musk being on top,” Savitt said in his opening statement. “We are here because Mr Musk didn’t get his way at OpenAI.”
OpenAI trial pitting Elon Musk against Sam Altman kicks off as OpenAI’s lawyer framed the company’s March 2019 creation of a for-profit entity as critical to letting it buy computing power and pay top scientists to stay competitive with DeepMind.
Musk’s lawyer Steven Molo told jurors OpenAI defendants sought personal riches as the company attracted investors including Microsoft.
“The defendants in the case stole a charity, and we’re asking you to hold them accountable,” Molo said. “It wasn’t a vehicle for people to get rich.””
Tech giants face off as lawsuit spotlights OpenAI’s founding disputes
Musk, the Tesla and SpaceX founder, is seeking $150 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, one of its largest investors, with proceeds going to OpenAI’s charitable arm. He also wants OpenAI to revert to a nonprofit, with Altman and Brockman removed as officers and Altman removed from its board.
Read: Google signs classified AI deal with Pentagon, The Information reports
Musk’s claims include breach of charitable trust and unjust enrichment.
Judge admonishes Musk over social media use
Before jurors were seated, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers admonished Musk after OpenAI lawyers complained about his posts on X on Monday, in which he assailed Altman as “Scam Altman” and accused him of stealing a charity.
Rogers said she was loath to issue a gag order, but urged Musk to “try to control your propensity to use social media to make things work outside the courtroom … Perhaps you’ve never done that before.”
Musk agreed to minimize his social media activity, as did Altman. Both parties expect Elon Musk and Sam Altman, along with Microsoft chief Satya Nadella, to testify at trial.
The trial could offer a window into some of the egos and personalities that shaped OpenAI as it evolved from a nonprofit research lab in Brockman’s apartment to a company worth more than $850 billion.
It also risks complicating OpenAI’s plans for a potential initial public offering by casting doubt on its leadership, and could intensify Americans’ fears about AI technology more broadly.
OpenAI was co-founded by Musk and Altman in 2015 with a goal of developing AI to benefit humanity and fend off rivals such as Google.
Read more: Microsoft CEO warns AI could stall without global economic impact
Lawyers dispute importance of AI safety to Musk
Molo said Musk grew more concerned as AI advanced and worked with Altman on safe development after meeting US officials.
President Barack Obama in 2015 did not address AI’s risks. Recruiting top AI scientists like Ilya Sutskever was part of that process, Molo said.
Savitt countered that AI safety wasn’t a priority for Musk, and that Musk denigrated OpenAI employees who focused on it.
“Jackasses is what he called them,” Savitt said.
Musk says he gave $38 million to OpenAI, which later formed a for-profit entity 13 months after he left.
Molo said a major turning point for Musk came when Microsoft invested $10 billion in OpenAI in January 2023. “It violated every commitment (the defendants) made, not just to Elon, but to the world,” he said.
Russell Cohen, a lawyer for Microsoft, said that company didn’t do anything wrong.
“Microsoft has been a responsible partner every step of the way,” Cohen said.
OpenAI recently overhauled structure again
OpenAI also faces growing competition from rivals including Anthropic, and is spending billions on computational resources. A potential IPO could value the company at $1 trillion, Reuters has reported.
Musk’s xAI trails far behind OpenAI in usage. He has folded that business into SpaceX, whose own potential IPO this year could be the largest ever.
Last fall, OpenAI became a public benefit corporation, with stakes held by its nonprofit and investors including Microsoft.
The nonprofit holds a 26% stake, plus warrants if OpenAI hits certain valuation targets.
A public benefit corporation could make OpenAI more investor-friendly while retaining its charitable origins.
want to know about more products, visit our shop. For the latest news, check out our blog. any queries, reach us via the contact page.