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Elon Musk's Lawsuit Against OpenAI Narrowed to Two Claims, Set for Trial in Oakland
Elon Musk dropped fraud claims against OpenAI, Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, leaving two claims for trial starting Monday in Oakland, California. The case alleges OpenAI abandoned its nonprofit mission after Microsoft backing and seeks up to $134 billion in damages.
Apr 27, 12:34 PM·3m read5 sources
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Elon Musk's legal battle against OpenAI and its leaders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman advanced to trial on Monday in federal court in Oakland, California, after Musk narrowed the scope of his lawsuit on the eve of the proceedings. US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers agreed to Musk’s request to streamline the case on Friday, allowing just two claims to proceed out of the 26 included in his November 2024 complaint.
Jury selection is set for Monday in the US District Court, Northern District of California, under case title Musk v.
Altman, 4:24-cv-04722. Musk claims OpenAI breached its nonprofit mission through Microsoft funding and for-profit shift, while OpenAI denies any wrongdoing and calls the suit harassment.
He is seeking as much as $134 billion in damages to be directed to OpenAI’s charitable arm if he wins at trial, along with a court order restoring OpenAI’s status as a nonprofit research organization and removing Altman and Brockman from their roles.
Sam Altman serves as chief executive officer of OpenAI, while Greg Brockman is president. Musk co-founded OpenAI with Altman and others in 2015 but left the board in 2018.
In 2023, Musk co-founded xAI, which has become one of OpenAI’s main rivals. 4 billion last February. Months later, OpenAI completed its for-profit restructuring plan.
The trial will be divided into two phases. In the first phase, a jury will hear arguments and testimony about Musk’s allegations focusing on unjust enrichment and breach of charitable trust, issuing an advisory verdict that will not be binding on Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who will decide if Musk proved his claims.
In the second phase, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will hear arguments on the remedies Musk is seeking and issue a ruling.
OpenAI argued to the judge that Musk's remedies were an unexpected late addition, describing it as a surprise ahead of trial. OpenAI, Altman, Brockman and Microsoft have denied wrongdoing and stated Musk’s claims are baseless harassment.
