OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, arriving at the federal courthouse in Oakland, California, on May 12, 2026. JOSH EDELSON/AFP
It was the punchiest question yet, and it injected new life into the trial for the charges Elon Musk laid against Sam Altman, CEO of the artificial intelligence company OpenAI, on Tuesday, May 12. Right from the start, Musk's lawyer, Steven Molo, asked Altman, "Are you completely trustworthy?" "I believe so," Altman replied, unable to say an unequivocal "yes." The lawyer pressed him: "Have you misled people, with whom you do business?" "I believe I am an honest and trustworthy businessperson." "That wasn't my question," Molo said. When asked whether he always told the truth, Altman ultimately replied: "I'm sure there are some times in my life when I did not."
With rapid-fire series of questions, Molo relentlessly challenged Altman's integrity. Altman, age 41, is accused by Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, of having "stolen" the non-profit OpenAI foundation, which they co-founded in 2015, and turning it into a giant tech company – one which is poised to go public by the end of the year. Dressed in a blue suit and a cross-pattern tie, Molo confronted Altman with all the damning statements that witnesses who had been summoned to the trial made against him. "You've repeatedly been called deceptive and a liar by people with whom you've done business, right?" Molo asked. "I have heard people say that," Altman replied.
