Elon Musk attacked OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman on X on Monday, April 27, as jury selection began in their federal trial.
The SpaceX chief executive called Altman “Scam Altman” and accused him of looting a charitable foundation. Musk wrote that the case raised the question of whether US courts should set a precedent allowing a charity to be “looted.”
Musk sued OpenAI, Altman and OpenAI President Greg Brockman two years ago, alleging they misled him into helping create the company as a non-profit.
He claimed that OpenAI abandoned its public-benefit mission after entering into commercial agreements with Microsoft.
Musk alleged that OpenAI’s 2019 and 2023 Microsoft deals created a “de facto merger” and made GPT-4 a closed-source part of Microsoft’s cloud platform.
“I started it, funded it, recruited critical talent and taught them everything I know about how to make a startup successful FOR THE PUBLIC GOOD,” Musk wrote.
He also wrote: “They stole the charity.”
Read: Judge Clears Path for Elon Musk’s Lawsuit Against OpenAI to Go to Trial
Altman appeared in an Oakland courtroom on Monday as potential jurors offered unfavourable views about both sides.
