Elon Musk Loses Lawsuit Against OpenAI Over Mission Shift

A US jury ruled against Elon Musk on Monday in his lawsuit against OpenAI, finding the artificial intelligence company not liable for allegedly straying from its original mission to benefit humanity.

The unanimous verdict in Oakland, California federal court determined Musk had brought his case after the statute of limitations expired. The jury deliberated for less than two hours.

The trial was widely viewed as a critical moment for the future of OpenAI and artificial intelligence, shaping how the technology should be used and who should benefit from it.

Following the verdict, Musk’s lawyer said he reserved the right to appeal. However, the judge suggested an uphill battle, noting that the statute of limitations was a factual issue decided by the jury.

“There’s a substantial amount of evidence to support the jury’s finding, which is why I was prepared to dismiss on the spot,” US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said.

Musk, a co-founder of OpenAI, which launched in 2015 and created ChatGPT, invested $38 million in its early years. He accused CEO Sam Altman and a top deputy of secretly shifting the company into a for-profit mode.

The trial, which began April 27, revealed the bitter falling-out between the two Silicon Valley titans and the origins of OpenAI, now valued at $852 billion and moving toward potentially one of the largest initial public offerings in history.

Altman and OpenAI argued there was never a promise to keep OpenAI a nonprofit indefinitely. They claimed Musk knew this and filed the lawsuit because he could not have unilateral control over the fast-growing AI developer.

Musk sought damages to be paid to OpenAI’s charitable arm and demanded Altman’s removal from the board. Musk’s decision to stop funding contributed to the rift. Musk said he was responding to deceptive conduct that OpenAI’s board recognized when it fired Altman as CEO in 2023 before reinstating him days later.