A federal jury in Oakland has rejected Elon Musk’s case against Sam Altman and OpenAI, ending the first phase of a closely watched legal fight over whether the ChatGPT maker abandoned its founding mission while moving deeper into commercial AI.
The nine-member jury reached a unanimous verdict after about two hours of deliberation, finding that Musk waited too long to bring his claims. US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers accepted the verdict, saying there was “a substantial amount of evidence” to support the jury’s finding.
The decision gives OpenAI a major legal reprieve at a time when the company is preparing for its next phase of growth. Musk had sought sweeping remedies, including an order that could have unwound OpenAI’s conversion into a for-profit entity.
Musk’s central allegation was that OpenAI, under Altman’s leadership, had betrayed its original public-benefit mission by shifting toward a profit-driven structure. The jury, however, did not rule on that core question. Instead, it concluded that Musk had enough knowledge of the issues years earlier and should have sued before 2024.
The trial reopened one of Silicon Valley’s most bitter founder disputes. Musk and Altman helped launch OpenAI in 2015, but the relationship deteriorated as the company grew from a startup into one of the world’s most influential AI firms. Jurors heard nearly three weeks of testimony from Musk, Altman, OpenAI President Greg Brockman and others, along with private messages, journal entries and corporate records tracing OpenAI’s internal evolution.
Musk’s lawyers argued that Altman and Brockman “stole a charity” by restructuring OpenAI into a for-profit business. They also accused Microsoft of aiding the alleged betrayal through its $13 billion investment in OpenAI from 2019 to 2023.
OpenAI’s lawyers countered that Musk was trying to damage a competitor after leaving the company and later launching xAI in 2023. They argued that a commercial structure was necessary to raise the capital required to build artificial general intelligence while keeping the mission intact.
Microsoft welcomed the verdict, saying the facts and timeline had “long been clear” and that it remained committed to its work with OpenAI.
The legal fight is not over. Musk’s lawyers said they will appeal. Other claims, including allegations involving monopoly concerns and competition in the AI sector, remain pending in later phases of the case. Musk’s xAI is also pursuing separate trade-secret and antitrust claims against OpenAI.
For OpenAI, the verdict removes an immediate threat to its corporate overhaul. For Musk, it is a courtroom setback in a fight that has become as much about control, legacy and the future of AI as it is about contracts and corporate structure.
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