Elon Musk Testifies in OpenAI Lawsuit on Founding Promises, $38M Donation

Elon Musk testified on the witness stand Tuesday afternoon in the OpenAI trial, accusing founders including Sam Altman of deceiving him into donating $38 million based on promises that the organization would remain a nonprofit dedicated to developing AI for public benefit.

Musk, who is seeking up to $134 billion in damages in the lawsuit against OpenAI, also aims for Altman's removal from his job at the company as a remedy. He stated that a verdict siding with OpenAI would greenlight the looting of American charities.

The trial pits Musk against Altman, who was present in the courtroom during the testimony.

District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers is presiding over the OpenAI jury trial before a nine-person jury. She stated that Musk is not allowed to speak to his attorneys overnight during the trial. Musk is expected to return to the witness stand on Wednesday for more direct examination from his lawyer, Steven Molo, followed by cross-examination likely from OpenAI's and Altman's lawyer, William Savitt.

The OpenAI trial is expected to last three weeks. Musk testified about his early career. He said he had $100,000 in student debt before profiting from Zip2. Musk testified that he works 80 to 100 hours a week. He is CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and his companies include Neuralink and the Boring Company.

Musk and Shivon Zilis share multiple children, including twins. Shivon Zilis served on OpenAI's board until 2023 and has held positions at Tesla and Neuralink. During testimony, Musk paused and stumbled before describing Zilis as his chief of staff with a laugh.

Musk testified that he was open to a small for-profit component to provide funding for OpenAI's nonprofit during internal talks between 2017 and 2018. Musk testified that recruiting Ilya Sutskever from Google to OpenAI took an immense amount of effort. Musk described Sutskever as an AI researcher and called him the most important researcher.

After the recruitment, Larry Page refused to speak to Musk. Page called Musk a speciest for being pro-humanity over AI. Ilya Sutskever left OpenAI in 2024 to start his own AI lab. OpenAI was founded in 2015 in part as a counterweight to Google's DeepMind.

Musk testified that he planned OpenAI to be a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that would aim to bring in more money than it spends. The name OpenAI represents open source, Musk testified. He proposed a five-person board for OpenAI consisting of himself, Sam Altman, Bill Gates, Pierre Omidyar, and Dustin Moskovitz, whom he referred to as Zuckerberg's roommate.

Musk met one-on-one with then-President Barack Obama in 2015 to warn about AI dangers. Musk used the time to focus on the risks AI could pose instead of seeking favors for his companies. Musk testified that SpaceX's goal is to make life multiplanetary, adding, 'If we're multiplanetary, we're more likely to survive.'

Musk testified that AI is like a smart child that needs proper values to avoid running out of control. Musk detailed his lack of work-life balance, stating, 'I technically work 80 to 100 hours a week. I don't have vacations, I don't have vacation homes.' Musk testified about his falling out with Google's Larry Page over AI talent.