Elon Musk tried to take control of OpenAI and even demanded a 90 percent ownership stake, the company’s chief executive Sam Altman told a high-profile court trial on Tuesday.
The hearing featured sharp exchanges between Altman and lawyers representing the world’s richest man.
The case centres on Musk’s lawsuit over OpenAI’s shift from a non-profit research lab into a commercial artificial intelligence giant valued at around $850 billion, driven by the success of ChatGPT.
OpenAI’s origins and shift to for-profit model
OpenAI began as a non-profit organisation in 2015. It later created a for-profit subsidiary in 2019 as competition in the AI sector intensified.
Altman and other executives argue the move became necessary to attract massive investment, including funding from Microsoft, to compete in an expensive and rapidly evolving industry.
Musk, co-founder of OpenAI, claims Altman and Greg Brockman misused a $38 million investment intended to support the organisation as a research lab focused on benefiting humanity.
“It does not fit with my conception of the words ‘stealing a charity’ to look at what has actually happened here,” Altman told the court in Oakland, California.
Musk’s control demands disputed
The court heard that OpenAI’s co-founders discussed creating the for-profit structure with Musk in 2017.
Altman told the jury that Musk pushed for dominant control of the company.
“An early number that Mr Musk threw out was that he should have 90 percent of the equity to start,” Altman said.
“It then softened, but it always was a majority,” he added.
Altman also said Musk’s refusal to commit in writing to limits on long-term control made him uncomfortable.
He said OpenAI was founded on the principle that no single person should control artificial general intelligence (AGI), the hypothetical stage where AI surpasses human intelligence.
According to Altman, when his and Greg Brockman’s approach blocked Musk’s control attempts, Musk left the project entirely and predicted its failure.
“The thing that burned into my memory is when he told us we had a zero percent — not one percent — chance of success,” Altman told the court.
Sharp courtroom exchanges
Musk’s legal team challenged Altman’s credibility during cross-examination.
“Are you completely trustworthy?” attorney Steven Molo asked. “Do you always tell the truth?”
“I believe I’m a truthful person,” Altman replied.
“It wasn’t my question, sir,” Molo responded sharply.
Altman was removed as OpenAI chief in November 2023 over concerns raised by the company’s board about transparency. He was reinstated five days later following internal pressure within the company.
Legal and financial stakes
The trial has drawn attention to the massive financial stakes in the global AI race, including competition with firms such as Anthropic, Google, and China’s Deepseek.
Musk now also competes in the sector through his own AI company xAI.
OpenAI argues Musk’s lawsuit is driven by resentment after failing to secure control of the company’s commercial direction.
Separately, prosecutors from 10 US states have called for Altman to disclose potential conflicts of interest ahead of a possible public listing of OpenAI next year. A letter to the US Securities and Exchange Commission described “self-dealing and serious conflicts of interest”.
The court also heard about major investments in the company, including a stake held by Greg Brockman reportedly worth around $30 billion.
On Monday, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told the court he was “very proud” of Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI, saying an initial $13 billion stake has grown more than tenfold in a few years.
An advisory jury is expected to decide on potential wrongdoing by around the week of 18 May. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will then issue a final ruling on liability and remedies, likely taking the jury’s recommendation into account.
