by James Farrell
OpenAI Group PBC co-founder and Chief Executive Sam Altman faced the witness stand today in the high-stakes trial that could determine the future of the company.
Elon Musk is suing the company and its leaders, alleging that Altman and OpenAI president Greg Brockman betrayed the founding mission to serve humanity by turning a nonprofit into a money-making venture. Musk wants Altman replaced as CEO, and up to $180 billion in damages to be paid to from the nonprofit arm of OpenAI to come from the for-profit arm.
OpenAI has hit back, saying Musk seeks revenge in a market where he has become a competitor with his company, xAI Corp. In his testimony today, Altman outright denied that Musk ever opposed turning OpenAI into a for-profit company. “Quite the opposite,” Altman said. When asked by his lawyer if he’d stolen a charity, his reply was: “It feels difficult to even wrap my head around that framing.”
“An early number that Mr. Musk threw out was that he should have 90% of the equity to start,” Altman went on. “It then softened, but it always was a majority.” Altman claimed that Musk’s argument to support his huge stake was simply that he was the “most well-known.” Altman testified that he was further made “uncomfortable” when Musk told him after his death, he might pass the company onto his children.
