Musk testifies at OpenAI trial it’s not OK to ‘loot a charity’

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. play Live Sign up Show navigation menu Navigation menu News Show more news sections Africa Asia US & Canada Latin America Europe Asia Pacific Middle East Explained Opinion Sport Video More Show more sections Features Economy Human Rights Climate Crisis Investigations Interactives In Pictures Science & Technology Podcasts Travel play Live Click here to search search Sign up Navigation menu caret-left Trending US-Israel war on Iran Tracking Israel's ceasefire violations Russia-Ukraine war Donald Trump caret-right Economy | Elon Musk Musk testifies at OpenAI trial it’s not OK to ‘loot a charity’ In his lawsuit, Musk said OpenAI cofounder Sam Altman and president Greg Brockman betrayed him and public by turning into profit-seeking juggernaut. x whatsapp-stroke copylink google Add on Google info Elon Musk is seeking $150bn in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, one of its biggest investors By Published On 28 Apr 2026 28 Apr 2026 Elon Musk has taken the stand at a high-stakes trial over the future of OpenAI, casting his lawsuit against the ChatGPT maker as a defence of charitable giving. The world’s richest person is suing OpenAI, its cofounder and chief executive officer, Sam Altman, and its president, Greg Brockman, and said on the stand on Tuesday that they betrayed him and the public by abandoning OpenAI’s mission to be a benevolent steward of AI for humanity and transforming the nonprofit into a profit-seeking juggernaut.

“If we make it OK to loot a charity, the entire foundation of charitable giving in America will be destroyed,” Musk testified on the first day of the trial . ” Musk, who founded carmaker Tesla and rocket company SpaceX, also said he is committed to serving the public by working 80- to 100-hour weeks and generally not taking vacations. “I like working and solving problems that make people’s lives better,” he said.

The Details

Before Musk began testifying, Bill Savitt, a lawyer for OpenAI and Altman, told jurors during his opening statement it was Musk who saw dollar signs as he helped finance OpenAI’s early growth and pushed it to become a for-profit business, one he might eventually lead as CEO. Savitt said Musk wanted “the keys to the kingdom” and sued only after he failed, and then in 2023 started his own AI business, xAI, now part of SpaceX. “What he cares about is Elon Musk being on top,” Savitt said in his opening statement.

“We are here because Mr Musk didn’t get his way. ” OpenAI’s lawyer also framed OpenAI’s March 2019 creation of a for-profit entity as critical to letting it buy computing power and pay top scientists to stay competitive with Google’s DeepMind AI lab. Musk’s lawyer, Steven Molo, told jurors in his opening statement that it was the OpenAI defendants who were greedy for money, as OpenAI began drawing investors, including Microsoft.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.