Musk is accusing the OpenAI leadership of deviating from its core mission to develop Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) that benefits all of humanity, in addition to allegations of fraud and unjust enrichment.
This was reported by The Verge as Elon Musk began testifying in the lawsuit he initiated against OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and company President Greg Brockman.
All three were founding members of OpenAI, but the relationship soured due to disagreements over the company’s structure and mission—specifically concerning whether OpenAI should become part of Musk’s Tesla. The business magnate subsequently departed the company and later established xAI, a direct competitor to OpenAI, which is now affiliated with SpaceX.
In recent years, Musk has filed at least four lawsuits against OpenAI, many of which were later withdrawn or dismissed. He alleges that OpenAI’s management has strayed from its original goal of creating AGI for the good of humanity, further claiming they are engaged in deceit and illicit profit-making. The entrepreneur is seeking judicial removal of Altman and Brockman from their current roles and the restoration of the company’s non-profit status.
Prior to the trial commencing, Musk launched an offensive on X, publishing over two dozen posts concerning OpenAI, Altman, and Brockman. He contends that he helped establish the AI lab with the intent to safeguard humanity, but that OpenAI has “lost its way,” pivoting into a commercial enterprise.
“Greg has secured tens of billions of dollars in stock for himself, and Scam [Sam Altman; ‘scam’ translating from English as ‘fraud’] has entered into dozens of side deals with OpenAI, securing a share of the profits,” the businessman asserts.
“The main difference between Elon Musk and Sam Altman: Elon Musk is genuinely changing the world for the better and saving lives,” Musk stated in one post. “And Sam Altman? He mostly just takes.”
During the court proceedings, Musk stated that he left OpenAI because the other founders demanded an excessive equity share. “I came up with the name, recruited the key personnel, and secured the funding,” he claimed.
The entrepreneur also voiced concerns regarding the trajectory of artificial intelligence development. In his view, AI could progress down one of two paths: either serving humanity or causing it harm.
“It could end us all,” he believes. “We don’t want it to end like ‘The Terminator.’ We want it to end like ‘Star Trek,'” Musk emphasized.
According to him, the day when AI surpasses human capabilities is “rapidly approaching.” “I have serious misgivings about AI. I have been worried about this for a very long time,” he added.
The entrepreneur touched upon his startup, Neuralink, which focuses on implanting chips into the human brain. “If we can successfully achieve a symbiosis between artificial intelligence and humans,” Musk explained, “we can create an AI that is better suited for humanity.”
Musk is scheduled to continue giving testimony. The trial will resume on the morning of Wednesday, April 29th.
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