Elon Musk's Lawsuit Against Sam Altman and OpenAI Falls Flat

Sam Altman and OpenAI Falls Flat">

Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI and its cofounders, including Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, has been rejected by a California jury. Musk had accused them of 'stealing a charity' by creating a for-profit affiliate of the frontier AI lab, but the jury found that any potential harms he suffered occurred before the deadline for filing his claims under the law. The trial, which featured testimony from prominent Silicon Valley figures, ultimately turned on narrow questions of law.

The defense had argued that Musk's claims were filed too late, citing a statute of limitations defense. The jury found this argument persuasive, leading to a swift deliberation period. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers praised the jury's finding, stating that there was 'a substantial amount of evidence to support' their decision.

The verdict is a significant win for OpenAI, which had faced the possibility of a restructuring ahead of its reported IPO. OpenAI's lead attorney, Bill Savitt, was jubilant after the verdict, saying that the jury had concluded that Musk's lawsuit was 'nothing more than an after the fact contrivance that bears no relationship to reality.' Microsoft, which Musk had also sued, welcomed the verdict, reaffirming its commitment to working with OpenAI. The verdict came during a hearing to determine potential damages to Musk had the verdict gone the other way.

While that discussion is now moot, the judge appeared skeptical of Musk's lawyers' arguments, telling an expert witness that their analysis seemed 'devoid of connection to the underlying facts.' Musk's lead counsel, Marc Toberoff, indicated that the team will appeal the decision, saying simply, 'One word: Appeal.'