Altman publicly refutes Musk... The legal battle over OpenAI's profit-oriented transformation enters the courtroom

OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman directly rebutted Elon Musk’s core claims during a hearing held on the 13th. This lawsuit is seen as a crucial watershed for determining OpenAI’s governance structure and future operational direction.

Musk claimed that OpenAI, Altman, and President Greg Brockman had abandoned their founding mission of contributing to humanity as a non-profit organization, transforming the company into a profit-centered structure. He demanded the removal of Altman’s CEO position and sought damages of up to $180 billion (approximately 13 trillion RMB). The claimed funds should be paid by OpenAI’s profit-making division to its non-profit division.

In response, OpenAI countered that Musk filed a “retaliatory lawsuit” while leading his competitor xAI. Altman also clarified in his testimony that Musk had never opposed becoming a for-profit company. He stated, “Quite the opposite,” and claimed Musk initially requested to acquire 90% of OpenAI’s shares. Altman explained that although the share request was later reduced, Musk had always hoped to hold a majority stake.

“Requesting 90% of shares” + “mention of inheritance by children after death”… highlighting conflicts with Musk

Altman testified that Musk, based on his high profile and influence, demanded a large shareholding. He also revealed that Musk had said the company could be handed over to his children after his death, which made him uncomfortable.

Criticism of Musk’s management style also emerged in court. Altman claimed Musk ranked engineers and researchers, causing “significant harm” to OpenAI’s organizational culture. He explained that the pressure to continuously demonstrate short-term performance, risking elimination, undermined the psychological safety needed for long-term research. He emphasized that this approach ultimately conflicted with the research focus of OpenAI.

Altman also mentioned the background of Musk’s departure from the company in 2018. According to emails submitted to the court, Musk believed OpenAI was unlikely to become a “true counterbalance” to Google’s ($GOOGL) DeepMind. Altman said Musk lost confidence in the company’s prospects and chose to exit.

“Lies and toxic culture” defense… 2023 board dismissal event re-examined

Musk’s lawyer, Stephen Molo, questioned during cross-examination, alleging that Altman fostered a “culture of lies and toxicity” within OpenAI. This claim was based on testimonies from some former board members and executives. However, Altman described himself as a “trustworthy entrepreneur” and denied deceiving anyone within the company.

The event of Altman’s dismissal by the board in 2023 has again become a focal point. At that time, the board believed Altman was consistently not fully transparent, but Altman stated in court that there was “misunderstanding and a collapse of trust.” Nonetheless, he reiterated that he had no intention of deceiving the board.

These testimonies indicate that internal governance disputes at OpenAI have gone beyond mere management power struggles, extending into the balance between the company’s public interest and commercial pursuits. Market analysts believe that the outcome of this trial could not only influence OpenAI’s governance structure but also significantly impact investment logic and regulatory discussions across the AI industry.

Helion·Reddit investment also became a point of controversy… Conflict of interest concerns expand

Musk’s side further scrutinized Altman’s external investment record. Notably, they emphasized that Altman holds about one-third of the shares in nuclear startup Helion Energy, valued at approximately $1.6 billion (about 130k RMB). Helion Energy was mentioned as a potential future power supplier for OpenAI data centers.

Meanwhile, investments in social media company Reddit and other holdings were also listed as potential conflicts of interest. It is reported that some related matters are under investigation by the U.S. House Oversight Committee.

Although the trial is ongoing, the testimonies clearly reveal divergent perspectives. Musk claims OpenAI has abandoned its founding spirit, while Altman counters that Musk has sought to expand control from the beginning. The final ruling could not only determine OpenAI’s future but also set an important benchmark for the “non-profit versus for-profit” debate in the AI industry.

TP AI Notice: This article uses the TokenPost.ai basic language model for summarization. The main content may be incomplete or differ from actual facts.