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Jury selection began on Monday in the lawsuit that Tesla founder Elon Musk brought against his fellow OpenAI co-founder, Sam Altman. Attorneys from both sides convened before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers as the high-stakes trial kicked off in Oakland. The pretrial order issued in March mandated that nine jurors, and no alternatives, be selected.
What is the lawsuit about? Musk accused Altman and other OpenAI leaders of deception and breaching a charitable trust. Musk and Altman co-chaired OpenAI when the nonprofit was founded in 2015, with Musk contributing about $38 million to the nonprofit’s mission to safely develop artificial intelligence.
The lawsuit alleges that Altman preyed on Musk’s altruism, feigning concern for the development of AI to get Musk to fund the nonprofit. After getting Musk’s funding, Altman created a for-profit subsidiary and sought investments from Microsoft, which prompted the 2018 split, according to the lawsuit. The ChatGPT creator now plans to restructure into a for-profit business, which Musk repeatedly insisted was illegal.
Has either side issued statements? Musk released a Monday morning statement taking aim at Altman and another OpenAI co-founder, Greg Stockman. Altman got dozens of OpenAI side deals and will get billions of dollars in stock, while Stockman already bagged tens of billions in stock, Musk alleged. Musk reiterated that OpenAI was founded for the public good and insisted that there must not be a legal precedent that allows people to loot charities.
OpenAI also released a Monday statement accusing Musk of attempting to undermine OpenAI’s work to ensure all humanity benefits from AI. The company characterized Musk’s lawsuit as a baseless and jealous attempt to derail a competitor. OpenAI can’t wait to make its case in court and question Musk under oath, according to the company’s statement.