Closing arguments are complete in Elon Musk vs. Sam Altman et al. But even as the nine-person jury began deliberations in a federal courthouse in Oakland, Calif., there was nothing normal about this case. Thanks to Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who will decide the future of OpenAI, the tech world's trial of the century may yet have a few surprises up its sleeve. In case you missed it, this trial was convened to determine the outcome of Musk's 2023 lawsuit, which claimed that his fellow OpenAI cofounders defrauded him. Even before it began, this case had all the hallmarks of a catfight between Silicon Valley frenemies.
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The scratching turned out to be fierce. Elon Musk's testy testimony included him being forced to admit his co-parenting relationship with OpenAI executive Shivon Zilis, his eyes and ears at the company. Meanwhile, Sam Altman implied Musk cared more about memes than the company he co-founded. Will Musk be sanctioned for skipping town?Just when it seemed the drama couldn't get messier, Musk skipped town when he'd told the judge he'd stick around in case he was needed. We don't know yet whether Judge Rogers, who runs a tight ship and has brooked no nonsense in this trial, will warn or sanction Musk for a rule violation. Neither the court nor Musk's team has yet officially confirmed that no paperwork was filed prior to Musk's departure to join the U.S. delegation in China.OpenAI's lawyers made hay out of Musk's absence. "Mr. Musk isn't here today," said the company's lead counsel, William Savitt, during closing arguments. "My clients are here. They're here because they care about this." It was left to Musk's attorney, Steven Molo, to apologize for his client's absence, and to assure the jury that "this is something he's passionate about."
