Musk v. Altman: Week 1 sees fraud claims, AI doomsday warnings, and a distillation admission
▼ Summary
– Elon Musk testified that he gave OpenAI $38 million in free funding for a nonprofit AI mission, which later became an $800 billion company.
– Musk is asking the court to remove Sam Altman and Greg Brockman from OpenAI and reverse its for-profit restructuring, potentially blocking a near-$1 trillion IPO.
– Musk argued he is suing to restore OpenAI’s original nonprofit safety mission, while OpenAI’s lawyer claimed Musk is suing to harm a competitor.
– Musk portrayed himself as an AI safety advocate, citing a conversation where Google’s Larry Page dismissed concerns about AI wiping out humanity.
– OpenAI’s lawyer cross-examined Musk by noting that his company xAI sued Colorado over an AI anti-discrimination law, challenging Musk’s safety image.
“I was a fool who provided them free funding to create a startup,” Musk told the jury. He explained that when he co-founded OpenAI in 2015 alongside Altman and Brockman, his intention was to support a nonprofit dedicated to developing AI for the public good, not to enrich its executives. “I gave them $38 million of essentially free funding, which they then used to create what would become an $800 billion company,” he said.
Musk is now seeking a court order to remove Altman and Brockman from their leadership positions and to reverse the restructuring that enabled OpenAI to operate a for-profit subsidiary. The trial’s outcome could derail OpenAI’s push toward an IPO, which currently targets a valuation near $1 trillion. In contrast, xAI is anticipated to go public as part of Musk’s rocket company SpaceX by June, aiming for a valuation of $1.75 trillion.
Testimony this week focused on a pivotal question: why Musk is suing OpenAI. He argued that his goal is to salvage OpenAI’s mission of developing AI safely by returning the company to its original nonprofit structure. OpenAI’s lawyer, William Savitt, who once represented Musk and his electric-car company Tesla, countered that Musk was “never committed to OpenAI being a nonprofit.” Instead, Savitt claimed, Musk is suing to weaken a competitor.
Who is the steward of AI safety?
During his direct examination early in the week, Musk portrayed himself as a long-standing advocate for AI safety. He said he co-founded OpenAI to create a “counterbalance to Google,” which dominated AI development at the time. When he asked Google cofounder Larry Page what would happen if AI tried to wipe out humanity, Musk recalled Page responding, “That will be fine as long as artificial intelligence survives.”
“The worst-case scenario is a Terminator situation where AI kills us all,” Musk later told the jury.
Savitt stood at the lectern and argued that Musk was not a “paladin of safety and regulation.” During his cross-examination, delivered in a sharp, surgical cadence, Savitt pointed out that xAI sued the state of Colorado in April over an AI law designed to prevent algorithmic discrimination.
(Source: MIT Technology Review)
