Elon Musk loses to OpenAI! His $150 billion lawsuit is dismissed— the key to the loss is the “timing of filing the lawsuit”

Musk sued OpenAI over claims filed beyond the statutory limitations period, only to be rejected in full by the court. The ruling helps resolve legal risks stemming from commercialization and clears the way for future IPO plans.

OpenAI prevails; Musk’s lawsuit dismissed in full by the court

According to NBC reports, there has been a major development in the two-year-long legal battle between Musk (Elon Musk) and OpenAI. On May 18, a federal jury in California ruled that Musk’s multiple claims brought against OpenAI, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and Microsoft are invalid for exceeding the statutory limitations period—effectively declaring that this $150 billion lawsuit has failed completely.

The case was heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The jury reached a verdict in less than two hours. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers then accepted the jury’s opinion, finding that OpenAI and the related defendants do not need to bear legal responsibility, while also dismissing Musk’s claims such as “breach of a charitable trust” and “unjust enrichment.”

Musk officially filed the lawsuit in 2024. His core argument was that OpenAI deviated from its original nonprofit intent when it was established in 2015, and after Microsoft made substantial investments, it gradually shifted toward commercialization. He argued that OpenAI was originally supposed to aim to “benefit humanity” and prevent AI development from being entirely driven by commercial interests.

• Related news: Musk and Altman lawsuit opens—day 1 recap: summarizing both sides’ statements and lawyers’ arguments, and how to understand the power struggle over OpenAI

The court ruled that Musk filed the suit too late

In court, OpenAI attorney Bill Savitt pointed out that Musk had long been aware of changes to OpenAI’s organizational structure and adjustments to its business model, yet still delayed for years before bringing the lawsuit. The court ultimately accepted this argument, ruling that the relevant claims had already exceeded California’s legally prescribed statute of limitations.

Image source: Reuters Court rules Musk loses

Under California law, the statute of limitations for lawsuits involving charitable trusts is 3 years, while for unjust enrichment it is 2 years. The jury believed that Musk knew early on that OpenAI was gradually shifting to a for-profit model, so it was not possible to reassert related rights many years later.

Musk’s team countered that the core dispute is not a timing issue, but whether OpenAI violated the promises it made in the first place. Musk said in court that he had always believed Sam Altman’s statements about OpenAI’s vision, and only later realized that the entire organization had completely changed direction.

However, the court also noted that Musk’s team was unable to present legally binding official documents proving that OpenAI could never transition to a for-profit structure. The entire trial ultimately relied heavily on early emails, records of discussions, and founders’ oral deliberations.

OpenAI’s commercialization roadblock removed

According to the lawsuit, Musk’s team had asked the court to carry out a major restructuring of OpenAI, including replacing Sam Altman, overturning OpenAI’s commercialization structure in recent years, and even demanding that Microsoft return massive benefits it obtained from working with OpenAI.

OpenAI’s lawyers emphasized that large AI models require substantial computing power, chips, and funding support. Without a commercialization framework, it would be difficult to compete with rivals such as Google DeepMind. OpenAI also mentioned that Musk had previously discussed profit models and even hoped that Tesla would lead OpenAI’s development.

Image source: The Information OpenAI CEO Sam Altman

The outcome of this ruling is also widely seen as a major victory for OpenAI’s commercialization efforts. Since Musk’s lawsuit could have created significant uncertainty for OpenAI’s future IPO, fundraising, and its collaboration with Microsoft, after the court’s decision, the relevant legal risks have clearly decreased.

At present, OpenAI’s market valuation is approaching $850 billion, and it continues to compete in AI development with Anthropic, Google DeepMind, and xAI. Many believe that if OpenAI successfully goes public in the future, it could become one of the largest tech IPOs in recent years.

Musk and OpenAI conflicts will continue

Although the result of this lawsuit is a major setback for Musk, the conflict between the two sides has not completely ended. Musk’s lawyer Steven Molo has said he will file an appeal, arguing that the ruling mainly involves procedural issues rather than the substance of the case itself.

At present, several legal cases between Musk and OpenAI are still ongoing, including OpenAI’s counterclaims against Musk for malicious litigation tactics, as well as xAI’s antitrust lawsuit against OpenAI and Apple.

As xAI continues to advance the Grok model, competition between Musk and OpenAI is gradually shifting away from the courtroom and back to the AI market itself. Especially once AI models begin to influence the search, social media, finance, and enterprise software markets, this conflict has increasingly evolved into a global struggle for AI dominance.