A high-stakes courtroom battle between two of Silicon Valley’s biggest tycoons is nearing its climax as a nine-person jury begins deliberations in Elon Musk’s blockbuster lawsuit against Sam Altman and OpenAI.
Musk, who co-founded OpenAI as a non-profit in 2015 claims Altman and president Greg Brockman committed a breach of charitable trust and unjust enrichment by reshaping the firm into a massive for-profit business.
The billionaire argues that OpenAI shifted from its public mission to effectively become a closed-source subsidiary of Microsoft.
He is seeking to reverse the corporate structure and wants $134 billion redistributed to OpenAI’s non-profit arm.
Taking the stand during the three-week trial, Musk simplified his case to the jury, stating, “They’re going to make this lawsuit very complicated but it’s actually quite simple. Which is: it’s not OK to steal a charity.”
Meanwhile, OpenAI’s defense team strongly rejected the allegations arguing that Musk is acting out of jealousy after walking away in 2018.
During closing arguments, OpenAI’s lead counsel, William Savitt highlighted Musk’s sudden absence from the courtroom to travel to China, telling jurors, “Mr. Musk isn’t here today. My clients are.”
A verdict is expected soon.
