Insider feud sparks fallout as billionaire backing withdrawn from artificial intelligence pioneer over power struggle.

Table of Contents Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, appeared in federal court on Tuesday to defend against claims made by Elon Musk that he and fellow executives undermined OpenAI’s foundational nonprofit principles. 🚨 Under oath to the U.S. Senate, May 2023: Altman: "I have no equity in OpenAI." Today on the stand in federal court: Musk's lawyer: "Were you under oath at that hearing?"Altman: "Yes." Musk's lawyer: "And you didn't disclose to the Senate that you had an interest in OpenAI… pic.twitter.com/cH1g9h90wZ — NIK (@ns123abc) May 12, 2026 During his roughly four-hour testimony at the Oakland, California federal courthouse, Altman presented a clear counternarrative: rather than having his charitable endeavor taken from him, Musk chose to walk away from the project. “We were kind of left for dead,” Altman stated during his testimony. The legal proceedings originated from a 2024 complaint filed by Musk against OpenAI, Altman, and Greg Brockman, OpenAI’s president. Musk alleges that this trio diverted the organization from its initial nonprofit framework. Additionally, he contends that his approximately $38 million in contributions were redirected toward commercial ventures without his consent. Altman denied making any commitments to Musk regarding maintaining OpenAI’s nonprofit status. He characterized their relationship as one marked by fundamental disagreements over strategic direction, ultimately leading to Musk’s complete loss of confidence in the organization. To support his account, Altman referenced a December 2018 email from Musk stating: “My probability assessment of OpenAI being relevant to DeepMind/Google without a dramatic change in execution and resources is 0%. Not 1%.” Altman emphasized these words were “burned into my memory.” A significant portion of Altman’s court appearance centered on Musk’s insistence on securing majority ownership of any for-profit iteration of OpenAI. According to Altman, Musk demanded controlling authority while making only vague references to potentially reducing his stake in the future. Altman expressed skepticism about this happening. “My belief is he wanted to have long-term control,” he told the court. He recounted what he characterized as a “hair-raising” exchange. When fellow co-founders questioned what would become of OpenAI should Musk pass away while maintaining control, Musk allegedly responded casually, suggesting his children could potentially inherit his stake. Altman emphasized that OpenAI’s founding principle centered on preventing any individual from controlling artificial general intelligence. This made Musk’s ownership demands fundamentally incompatible with the organization’s values. During negotiations, Musk floated the idea of combining OpenAI with Tesla. Altman declined, arguing that Tesla’s identity as an automotive manufacturer made it unsuitable for advancing OpenAI’s objectives. Musk officially departed from OpenAI’s board in February 2018. Altman testified that staff reactions were mixed, with some experiencing a “morale boost,” while others feared Musk might pursue “vengeance.” Steven Molo, representing Musk, utilized cross-examination to cast doubt on Altman’s reliability. His questioning began bluntly: “Are you completely trustworthy?” Altman initially responded “I believe so,” before modifying his answer to an unqualified yes. Molo highlighted previous accusations from former associates, including Dario Amodei, who founded Anthropic, and cited Monday’s testimony from Ilya Sutskever, OpenAI’s former chief scientist. Sutskever claimed to have documented what he characterized as recurring instances of dishonesty by Altman. Altman also discussed his temporary 2023 ouster as CEO. He described the experience as an “incredible betrayal” and noted that board members offered minimal justification beyond claiming he hadn’t been forthcoming with them. “I had poured the last years of my life into this,” Altman testified. “I was watching it about to be destroyed.” OpenAI currently carries a valuation exceeding $850 billion according to private market investors. Musk’s lawsuit seeks the removal of both Altman and Brockman, along with redirecting over $130 billion to OpenAI’s nonprofit foundation. Final arguments are set for Thursday. The jury will deliver an advisory opinion, with final authority resting with Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers. Discover top-performing stocks in AI, Crypto, and Technology with expert analysis.