A jury in Oakland, California, has ruled against Elon Musk in his high-profile court dispute with Sam Altman and OpenAI. Musk filed a lawsuit in 2024, accusing Altman and OpenAI of breaching their commitment to keep the AI company nonprofit. The jury determined that Musk's claims exceeded the statute of limitations. This verdict comes as SpaceX, under Musk's leadership, is expected to soon disclose its IPO prospectus.
After less than two hours of deliberation, the jury on Monday dismissed Elon Musk's allegations against OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, concluding a dramatic chapter in the intense rivalry between the two once-close tech billionaires. Presided over by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, the court concurred with the advisory jury's finding that Altman and OpenAI are not liable, and that "claims for breach of charitable trust and unjust enrichment are dismissed as time-barred." Gonzalez Rogers indicated she was prepared to dismiss Musk's lawsuit "on the spot."
The jury concluded that Musk's lawsuit was filed outside the permissible time frame, ruling that he had three years to bring the action but failed to do so in a timely manner. "Substantial evidence supports the jury's verdict," the judge stated, summarizing the three-week trial held in Oakland, California. Before Judge Gonzalez Rogers, Musk's attorney, Steven Molho, reserved his client's right to appeal.
Musk sued Altman and OpenAI in 2024, alleging they violated their promise to maintain the AI lab as a nonprofit organization. Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015 but left its board three years later. Microsoft (which has invested in OpenAI since 2019) was also named as a defendant in the case, with Musk claiming the software giant aided and abetted the AI startup's alleged breach of charitable trust. The court noted that the claims against Microsoft were similarly dismissed.
Legal representatives for OpenAI and Microsoft exchanged hugs and backslaps in celebration as they left the courthouse in downtown Oakland. During trial testimony, the jury heard from Altman, Brockman, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and Musk himself.
This ruling arrives at a pivotal moment for both Altman and Musk, as these tech titans are steering their respective companies toward public markets, anticipating record-breaking offerings. In late March, OpenAI raised $122 billion at a valuation exceeding $850 billion. The ChatGPT maker is racing to advance its models, continuously building consumer services while striving to catch up with Anthropic in the enterprise AI market.
Meanwhile, Musk is expected to begin meeting with investors soon ahead of SpaceX's initial public offering. SpaceX, valued at $1.25 trillion after merging with xAI in February, confidentially filed for an IPO in April, with its prospectus likely to be made public this week.
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