Elon Musk loses landmark lawsuit against OpenAI

Elon Musk suffered The worst possible defeat His legal battle is against OpenAI A federal jury and judge ruled that he waited too long to file his claims against the AI ​​startup and its top executives, Sam Altman and Greg Brockman.

The jury’s decision was a non-binding recommendation sent to U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, though she immediately accepted it Monday as her recommendation, making it final.

the A committee of nine members The ruling was handed down unanimously in an Oakland, California, courtroom after deliberations that lasted less than two hours. They found that the statute of limitations expired long before Musk did. He filed his lawsuit In 2024. Musk had hoped to convince a jury that Altman and Brockman, with the help of Microsoft money, had turned OpenAI into a behemoth far beyond what was envisioned when the three and others founded it as a nonprofit nearly 11 years ago.

Because the jury found that the case was not brought on time, it did not consider Musk’s three claims, including breach of charitable trust, unjust enrichment, and aiding and abetting against Microsoft.

Musk, Altman and Brockman were not present when the jury delivered its verdict. Elon Musk’s lawyer, Mark Toberoff, made a one-word comment to reporters exiting the courtroom: “Appeal.” Lawyers for OpenAI were not immediately available for comment.

But William Savitt, an attorney for OpenAI, said last week that Musk’s lawsuit and the ensuing trial were a “glorious contest of hypocrisy.” Musk, by court order Do not tweet during the trialHe hasn’t said much about that in recent weeks.

Despite Musk’s disappointing semifinal result, the trial appears to have been tainted The public image of OpenAI and its senior executives. New details have emerged about Brockman fortune and Altman’s alleged history of dishonesty. They were also pulled away from their day jobs for dozens, if not hundreds, of hours to conduct depositions, prepare to testify, sit on the witness stand, and show face in court.

Musk spent much less time in the courtroom than the OpenAI executives, about three days before never returning again. He even traveled to China for President Donald Trump’s state visit last week, although he could have technically been called to testify again on short notice. “I will say it was a surprise for us to see that,” Savit told the media last week. “Instead of being in the jurisdiction where he filed the suit ready to appear before the jurors he had dismissed, (he) decided to board Air Force One and go to China.”

Although it is so I took financial and emotional risksIt was also a gritty contest between two tech billionaires who broke up a brief partnership over an alleged leadership dispute, only to end up pursuing remarkably similar visions about the future of generative AI. Musk’s attempt to settle the lawsuit just before the trial begins It was rejected.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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