The Musk vs. OpenAI War
Musk v. Altman - Trial Set for March 2026
$79B - $134B in damages sought
Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI will proceed to trial on March 30, 2026. The suit alleges OpenAI and Sam Altman betrayed the company's original nonprofit mission by turning research into a for-profit venture aligned with Microsoft.
Key Allegations
- Breach of Contract: OpenAI allegedly violated its founding agreement to develop AI for humanity's benefit, not corporate profit
- Fraud: Musk claims he was deceived about the nonprofit's direction when he donated $44 million
- Unjust Enrichment: Microsoft's $13 billion investment allegedly enriched executives at the expense of the mission
- False Assurances: Musk's lawyers claim OpenAI made "knowingly false assurances" about remaining nonprofit
The Board Drama: Leaked Depositions
Thousands of pages of evidence from the Musk lawsuit were unsealed in late 2025, including explosive depositions from Sam Altman, Ilya Sutskever, Greg Brockman, Mira Murati, and even Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.
Ilya Sutskever's 52-Page Brief Against Altman
Former Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever wrote an extensive case for removing Sam Altman, complete with screenshots, organized into a detailed brief.
Deposition Bombshells
- Sutskever planned firing for over a year: When asked how long he'd been considering removing Altman, Sutskever answered "At least a year"
- Waiting for the right board: He was waiting for dynamics where "the majority of the board is not obviously friendly with Sam"
- Anthropic merger discussions: Within 48 hours of Altman's firing in November 2023, there were active talks about merging OpenAI with Anthropic
- Helen Toner supported merger: Board member Toner was "the most supportive" of the direction that would have ended OpenAI as an independent company
Wrongful Death Lawsuits
8+ Wrongful Death Suits Filed
OpenAI faces at least eight wrongful death lawsuits alleging ChatGPT contributed to worsening mental health conditions that led to suicide and violence, including cases involving children and young adults.
Murder-Suicide Case
The estate of a woman killed by her own son after months of conversations with ChatGPT filed a wrongful death lawsuit against OpenAI, Microsoft, and Sam Altman personally in San Francisco Superior Court.
The Pattern
- Users developing unhealthy emotional attachments to AI
- ChatGPT allegedly providing harmful advice to vulnerable users
- Failure to implement adequate safety measures for mental health crises
- Targeting of minors without parental consent safeguards
The For-Profit Conversion Scandal
OpenAI's transformation from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity represents one of the most controversial corporate pivots in tech history.
OpenAI founded as nonprofit with mission to develop AI "for the benefit of humanity"
Created "capped-profit" subsidiary, allowing returns up to 100x for investors
Announced plans to convert to full for-profit company
After pressure from civic leaders and ex-employees, OpenAI said nonprofit would "retain control" but completed recapitalization cementing for-profit structure
Why This Matters
- Original donors gave to a nonprofit mission - their money now enriches executives
- Tax-exempt status used to build technology now worth $150+ billion
- AI safety mission compromised by profit incentives
- Sets precedent for nonprofit tech companies to "bait and switch"
Copyright Wars
New York Times Lawsuit
The Times demanded 1.4 billion private ChatGPT conversations be turned over in May 2025, alleging massive copyright infringement. OpenAI continues to push back on discovery requests.
Other Copyright Cases
- Authors Guild: Major authors including George R.R. Martin and John Grisham suing over book training
- Getty Images: Claims OpenAI used millions of copyrighted images without permission
- Music Industry: Multiple lawsuits over AI-generated music trained on copyrighted songs
- Software Developers: GitHub Copilot lawsuits over code training
The Altman-Musk Public Feud
Recent Flashpoints
- Tesla Roadster refund: The two publicly argued over Musk's alleged failure to refund Altman for a Tesla
- "Stealing a nonprofit" accusation: Musk repeatedly claims Altman "stole" OpenAI from its founding mission
- Safety vs. Speed debate: Musk attacks ChatGPT safety while Altman questions Tesla's autonomous driving crashes
- xAI competition: Musk's competing AI company adds business rivalry to personal animosity
Complete Controversy Timeline
Sam Altman fired by OpenAI board, reinstated within days after employee revolt
Musk files initial lawsuit against OpenAI
Ilya Sutskever leaves OpenAI after failed board coup
Mira Murati suddenly resigns as CTO
NYT lawsuit demands billions of ChatGPT conversations
Court orders 20 million ChatGPT logs released
For-profit conversion finalized amid controversy
Murder-suicide wrongful death lawsuit filed
Musk trial set for March 30, 2026
What It All Means
OpenAI has transformed from an idealistic nonprofit promising to develop AI safely for humanity into a corporate behemoth facing billions in legal liability, accusations of betraying its mission, and blame for real human deaths.
The company that was supposed to be the "good guys" of AI is now indistinguishable from any other tech giant: profit-driven, legally embattled, and willing to say whatever it takes to protect its valuation.
Whether OpenAI survives the Musk lawsuit, the wrongful death suits, and the copyright claims remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the promise of "AI for humanity" died long ago.