Jury rules against Musk in lawsuit against OpenAI and AltmanJury rules against Musk in lawsuit against OpenAI and Altman

Jurors soundly rejected Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s allegations against Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and OpenAI, and found the defendants not liable on all claims on Monday.

The blockbuster tech trial,**** which could have seen Altman and Brockman removed from OpenAI’s leadership, took three weeks, but the jury didn’t even need two hours to reach a unanimous verdict: Musk had waited too long to bring his case forward, exceeding the statute of limitations. 

• US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who had the ultimate legal authority on the decision, agreed that “there’s a substantial amount of evidence to support the jury’s finding,” and warned Musk’s lawyer, who reserved the right to appeal, that it would be an uphill battle. 
• Musk had alleged that OpenAI abandoned its founding mission as a nonprofit dedicated to developing AI for humanity and instead became a profit-driven company closely connected to Microsoft.
• Details around Microsoft’s massive ties to OpenAI also came to light, revealing that the tech giant invested $100 billion in the project**** despite having**** doubts about its product.
• The trial also revealed Brockman’s stake in OpenAI is worth $30 billion.**** 
• While Musk was the loser, those of us who enjoy courtroom drama were the winners, with zingers from OpenAI’s lawyer, Sarah Eddy, such as, “Even the mother of [Musk’s] children can’t back his story,” which Elizabeth Lopatto over at The Verge did a hero’s job of rounding up.

The Takeaway

While this may be the last we hear of this particular battle (in court anyway), it’s not the end of OpenAI’s legal battles. Currently, there are outstanding suits against the company for copyright infringement as well as lawsuits alleging its chatbot contributed to self-harm and other destructive behaviors.**** 

And this may not be the last battle among OpenAI and its Big Tech frenemies: Bloomberg reported that the relationship between Apple and OpenAI has deteriorated so far, legal action may be imminent.