Elon Musk testifies in OpenAI trial

Elon Musk took the witness stand in Oakland on April 28 and told jurors OpenAI was created as a nonprofit, not a business built to enrich executives. (reuters.com) Musk is suing OpenAI, Chief Executive Sam Altman, President Greg Brockman and Microsoft over OpenAI’s 2019 shift to a for-profit structure. He is seeking $150 billion in damages and Altman’s removal from OpenAI’s board. (reuters.com) (time.com) In court, Musk said, “it’s not OK to loot a charity,” and told the jury he came up with OpenAI’s idea and name, recruited key people and provided the initial funding. Reuters reported Musk invested $38 million before leaving in 2018. (reuters.com 1) (reuters.com 2) OpenAI says the 2019 for-profit arm was necessary to buy computing power and pay top researchers as it competed with Google DeepMind and other labs. Microsoft later invested $10 billion in OpenAI in January 2023. (reuters.com) OpenAI’s lawyer William Savitt told jurors Musk wanted “the keys to the kingdom” and sued only after he failed to gain control. The company says Musk’s real interest is helping xAI, the rival AI company he started in 2023 and later folded into SpaceX. (reuters.com 1) (reuters.com 2) The case turns on a basic corporate question with unusually high stakes: whether money given to build a public-interest nonprofit can later support a commercial AI company. A ruling for Musk could force OpenAI to unwind parts of its structure and complicate future fundraising. (time.com) (apnews.com) The trial began after a nine-person jury was selected on April 27, and Associated Press reported it is scheduled to run about three weeks. Witnesses expected to testify include Altman, Microsoft Chief Executive Satya Nadella, former OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever and former OpenAI technology chief Mira Murati. (apnews.com) (time.com) Before jurors were seated, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers admonished Musk over posts on X attacking Altman and both men agreed to limit social media commentary during trial. Reuters reported Musk returned to the stand on Wednesday, April 29, for more testimony and cross-examination. (reuters.com) What started in 2015 as a partnership between Musk and Altman is now a courtroom fight over who controls one of artificial intelligence’s most valuable companies — and what OpenAI was supposed to be. (reuters.com)