Musk Testifies for Three Days in OpenAI Nonprofit Lawsuit
SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk spent three days on the witness stand this week in his lawsuit against OpenAI, with emails, text messages and tweets entering as evidence in the case challenging the company’s conversion from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity.
Musk’s central argument, according to TechCrunch’s reporting on the proceedings, is that OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman betrayed the organization’s founding nonprofit mission by steering it toward a for-profit model. The testimony is part of a legal battle that could reshape how AI companies structure themselves and honor their original charters.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court, pits two prominent figures in the AI industry against each other. Musk, who co-founded OpenAI in 2015 as a nonprofit artificial intelligence research lab, has argued the organization was created to develop AI for the benefit of humanity — not to generate profits for investors.
OpenAI announced plans to convert its corporate structure in late 2024, a move that would allow it to more easily raise capital and compensate employees with equity. The conversion has drawn scrutiny from multiple parties, including state attorneys general who have weighed in on whether such a transformation adequately protects the nonprofit’s original charitable assets.
The courtroom proceedings are expected to continue with additional witnesses, according to TechCrunch. The documentary evidence presented during Musk’s testimony — spanning private communications and public statements — offers a rare window into the early dynamics between OpenAI’s founders and the decisions that led to its current corporate trajectory.
The case carries implications beyond the two parties involved. A ruling could establish precedent for how nonprofit AI research organizations can restructure, and whether founders and early donors retain legal standing to challenge such conversions. It also raises broader questions about AI governance at a moment when the industry’s most powerful companies are navigating intense competition for talent and capital.
Legal experts have noted that nonprofit law generally makes it difficult to convert charitable assets to private benefit, a principle Musk’s legal team appears to be leveraging in its arguments against Altman and OpenAI’s board.
Neither OpenAI nor Musk’s representatives have issued public statements on this week’s testimony. The trial is expected to continue in the coming weeks.
