Nadella Testifies: Microsoft Has Earned $9.5 Billion from OpenAI, Internal Emails Say "Don't Want to Be Surpassed Like IBM"

CryptoWorld News reports that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella completed hours of testimony on Monday during a court hearing, answering lawyers’ questions about Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI.
Microsoft corporate development executive Michael Wetter revealed in video testimony that by March 2025, Microsoft had generated a total of $9.5 billion in revenue through its collaboration with OpenAI, including an agreement where OpenAI shares 20% of its income with Microsoft.
Nadella stated that he is “very proud” to have taken the risk of investing in OpenAI when no one else dared, and denied that Microsoft’s investment was a donation.
An internal email from 2022 showed Nadella’s anxiety over a projected $4 billion loss in the future, and his request to renegotiate to acquire OpenAI’s technical know-how.
He wrote in the email, “I don’t want to be IBM, and I want OpenAI to become Microsoft.”
During the 2023 Altman firing incident, Nadella mocked the board’s actions as “amateurish” and denied forcing the board to reinstate Altman, but testimony revealed he discussed 14 potential board candidates with his deputy and vetoed at least two.
Nadella also confirmed that Elon Musk has never directly expressed dissatisfaction to him regarding Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI.