A yearslong legal battle between Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is set to go to trial in Northern California on Monday, marking a dramatic courtroom confrontation between two of the tech industry’s most prominent figures, News.Az reports, citing CNBC.
In his $134 billion lawsuit, Musk alleges that OpenAI, Altman, and company president Greg Brockman broke their commitment to keep the artificial intelligence lab a nonprofit in perpetuity. OpenAI has since restructured, operating through a for-profit subsidiary and reaching a valuation of more than $850 billion.
Musk and Altman were once close collaborators and were among the founding group of OpenAI in 2015, driven by shared concerns about the risks of artificial intelligence and the goal of developing it for the benefit of humanity.
However, the relationship has since collapsed into open rivalry. Musk launched xAI in 2023 as a competitor to OpenAI and later merged it with SpaceX in a deal valuing the combined entity at $1.25 trillion. The trial comes as Musk is also preparing for a potential public listing of SpaceX in what could be a record-breaking IPO.
OpenAI is reportedly targeting a possible market debut in the fourth quarter, according to CNBC. In investor materials earlier this year, the company identified Musk’s lawsuit as a potential business risk.
OpenAI has repeatedly rejected Musk’s claims, describing the lawsuit as “baseless” and accusing him of a “harassment campaign that’s driven by ego, jealousy and a desire to slow down a competitor,” according to a post on X in April.
The public dispute has escalated through repeated exchanges on social media. In August, Musk wrote on X, “Scam Altman lies as easily as he breathes,” while in February Altman responded, “Really excited to get Elon under oath in a few months, Christmas in April!”
Jury selection in the case is set to begin Monday at a federal courthouse in Oakland, near San Francisco, where OpenAI is headquartered. Musk is seeking not only damages but also the return of what he describes as “ill-gotten gains” to OpenAI’s nonprofit arm, as well as the removal of Altman and Brockman and the reversal of OpenAI’s restructuring.
The case is one of multiple legal actions Musk has brought against OpenAI. In 2025, X (formerly Twitter) and xAI sued OpenAI and Apple, alleging anticompetitive behavior, with a hearing scheduled for May in Texas. Separately, a California federal judge dismissed an xAI lawsuit in February that accused OpenAI of stealing trade secrets.
The dispute traces back to 2018, when Musk left OpenAI’s board following disagreements over its direction, including an unsuccessful attempt to merge the company with Tesla. After his departure, OpenAI created a for-profit subsidiary to attract outside investment.
In 2024, OpenAI briefly considered transitioning fully into a for-profit company, but later reversed course after pushback from civic leaders and former employees, including Musk. In October, it completed a recapitalization that maintained its nonprofit structure while giving it control over the for-profit arm.
Musk’s 2024 lawsuit claims he was “assiduously manipulated” and “deceived” by promises that OpenAI would take a safer and more open path than profit-driven tech companies.
In more recent filings, Musk’s legal team has sought up to $134 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, one of its major backers and also a defendant in the case. Microsoft is accused of aiding and abetting alleged breaches of charitable trust tied to OpenAI’s restructuring.
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