Key Points
- Elon Musk is seeking up to $134 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft.
- He claims the companies profited from his early support of the AI startup.
- Musk alleges that OpenAI violated its founding mission by becoming a for-profit entity.
- OpenAI and Microsoft have called the lawsuit “baseless” and are challenging the damages claims.
Elon Musk is asking for a massive payday in his lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft, claiming he is owed up to $134 billion in “wrongful gains.” In a new court filing on Friday, Musk argued that the AI startup and its biggest backer profited immensely from his early support and contributions, and now he wants his cut.
Musk, who co-founded OpenAI in 2015 but left in 2018, alleges that the company violated its original mission to be a non-profit when it restructured into a for-profit entity. He claims that his initial investment of about $38 million, along with his help in recruiting staff and lending credibility to the project, was instrumental in OpenAI’s success.
According to Musk’s filing, OpenAI gained between $65.5 billion and $109.4 billion from his early involvement, while Microsoft gained between $13.3 billion and $25.1 billion.
“Just as an early investor in a startup company may realize gains many orders of magnitude greater than the investor’s initial investment, the wrongful gains that OpenAI and Microsoft have earned… are much larger than Mr. Musk’s initial contributions,” the filing argues.
OpenAI and Microsoft, for their part, have called the lawsuit “baseless” and a “harassment” campaign. They are challenging Musk’s damages claims, calling his expert’s analysis “made up” and “unverifiable.” They argue that the idea of transferring billions of dollars from a non-profit to a “former donor-turned-competitor” is “implausible.”
The case is set to go to trial in April, where a jury will decide the fate of this high-stakes battle between some of the biggest names in the tech world.
