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Elon Musk Testifies in OpenAI Lawsuit
Elon Musk testified in a California court this week, accusing OpenAI executives of deceiving him by shifting the company from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity. OpenAI countered that Musk supported the change and is motivated by competition from his own AI firm. The trial, involving Microsoft as a co-defendant, highlights early emails and disputes over AI development.
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Elon Musk testified for three days in a federal court in Oakland, California, in his lawsuit accusing OpenAI and its leaders of breaching the company's founding agreements by shifting from a nonprofit to a for-profit structure. According to court filings cited in multiple reports, Musk alleges that OpenAI's transition violated promises to prioritize artificial intelligence development for humanity's benefit, with him donating approximately $44 million—higher than the $38 million figure mentioned in some accounts—between 2016 and 2020.
The case, presided over by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, names OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, President Greg Brockman, and Microsoft as defendants, claiming unjust enrichment and breach of contract.
During testimony, Musk stated, "It's very simple. It's not okay to steal a charity," in reference to OpenAI's structural changes, as reported by NPR and Benzinga. He testified that he left OpenAI's board in 2018 after disagreements over control and direction, adding that he stopped funding by 2020 to focus on his other companies, including Tesla and SpaceX.
OpenAI's defense presented emails from 2015 and 2017 showing Musk had proposed or directed the creation of a for-profit entity within OpenAI, including a 2017 instruction to advisors to register a for-profit corporation in OpenAI's name, according to evidence exhibits detailed in The Verge.
In cross-examination by OpenAI attorney William Savitt, Musk admitted he did not fully read a 2018 email from Altman about securing Microsoft funding, stating, "I didn't read the fine print," as quoted in Benzinga. Musk also acknowledged that his company xAI, launched in 2023, used a process called "distillation" involving OpenAI data to train its models, a point highlighted in Forbes and TechCrunch reports.
OpenAI argued in court that Musk supported a for-profit arm initially but sued after failing to gain majority control, with Savitt questioning Musk on a 2023 public letter he signed calling for a pause on advanced AI development, without disclosing xAI's formation at the time.
