OpenAI wins as Musk’s lawsuit deemed untimely
On Monday, a US jury ruled against Elon Musk in his lawsuit against OpenAI, finding the AI company not liable for allegedly deviating from its original mission to benefit humanity.
In a unanimous verdict, the jury in Oakland, California federal court said Musk had brought his case too late, News.Az reports, citing France24.
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The jury deliberated less than two hours.
The trial had widely been seen as a critical moment for the future of OpenAI and artificial intelligence generally, both in how it should be used and who should benefit from it.
The outcome spares OpenAI from a potentially existential legal threat.
Had Musk prevailed, he was seeking to force the company to revert to its nonprofit structure – a move that would have derailed its planned IPO and unwound ties to major investors including Microsoft, Amazon and SoftBank, who have poured billions into the company amid the global AI race.
Following the verdict, Musk's lawyer said he reserved the right to appeal, but the judge suggested he may have an uphill battle because whether the statute of limitations ran out before Musk sued was a factual issue.
"There's a substantial amount of evidence to support the jury's finding, which is why I was prepared to dismiss on the spot," US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said.
In his 2024 lawsuit, Musk accused OpenAI, its chief executive Sam Altman and its president Greg Brockman of manipulating him into giving $38 million, then going behind his back by attaching a for-profit business to its original nonprofit and accepting tens of billions of dollars from Microsoft and other investors.
Musk called the OpenAI defendants' conduct "stealing a charity".
By Ulviyya Salmanli
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