Altman Rejects Musk's 'Stolen Charity' Claims in Oakland Trial
Sam Altman testified in a federal trial in Oakland, saying he never promised Elon Musk OpenAI would remain a nonprofit as Musk seeks up to $150 billion.
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Overview
Sam Altman concluded roughly four hours of testimony on Tuesday in the federal trial in Oakland, Calif., and testified he never promised Elon Musk that OpenAI would remain a nonprofit.
The case stems from a 2024 lawsuit in which Musk alleges Altman and Greg Brockman converted OpenAI away from its nonprofit mission and misused his roughly $38 million donation.
Altman told jurors Musk tried to hamstring or kill OpenAI, launching xAI and attempting to poach talent, while Musk's lawyers accuse Altman and Brockman of enriching themselves by sidelining the nonprofit.
Musk has asked the court to disgorge up to $150 billion and to unwind the for-profit, a move that could reshape OpenAI's leadership and its plans for a possible IPO.
Closing arguments are on Thursday, and an advisory jury decision and a judge's ruling are possible next week.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame the story around Altman's allegations, emphasizing Musk's alleged appetite for control (e.g., "if you have control, what happens when you die?", suggestion to make OpenAI a Tesla subsidiary) and portraying founders as mission-driven. They foreground vivid anecdotes and selected quotes while giving little space to Musk's response or independent context.