The trial between Musk and Altman commences with $150 billion on the line regarding OpenAI's transition from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity.

      **TL;DR**

      Jury selection kicks off Monday in Musk v. Altman, a federal trial evaluating whether the transition of OpenAI from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity amounts to unjust enrichment and breach of charitable trust. Musk removed fraud allegations on Friday to concentrate on the two remaining claims. A damaging piece of evidence is a 2017 diary entry from Greg Brockman describing the nonprofit commitment as “a lie.” Judge Gonzalez Rogers found "ample evidence" supporting the case and dismissed almost all motions to dismiss. An advisory jury will listen to testimonies from Musk, Altman, Nadella, Murati, and Sutskever, but the judge will ultimately determine remedies, which could reach $150 billion in damages and potential reversal of the conversion.

      Jury selection starts Monday in a federal court in Oakland to assess whether OpenAI's shift from a nonprofit to a highly valued company constitutes a breach of charitable trust. Elon Musk, one of the co-founders of OpenAI in 2015 who has contributed at least $38 million, is suing Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and OpenAI on two counts: unjust enrichment and breach of charitable trust. Musk seeks up to $150 billion in damages for the nonprofit sector, the removal of Altman and Brockman from leadership roles, and an order to reverse the for-profit conversion. On Friday, he dropped fraud allegations, narrowing the case from 26 claims to two, tightening the focus on whether OpenAI's leadership promised a nonprofit while creating a $852 billion company instead.

      **The evidence**

      The key evidence in this case isn't an email from Sam Altman but rather a diary entry from Greg Brockman, OpenAI’s president and co-founder, dated 2017. In that entry, he expressed disbelief at committing to a nonprofit only to convert to a b-corp shortly after, stating it felt like a lie. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who is overseeing the case and will make the final ruling if the jury finds liability, directly referenced this entry in her January 15 ruling to proceed with the trial. She noted "ample evidence" substantiating Musk's claims and rejected nearly all motions from OpenAI and Microsoft to dismiss the lawsuit. This ruling served as a significant endorsement of the case, indicating the court sees the allegations as serious enough for jury consideration.

      Musk's legal representatives also revealed a 2017 email from Altman, where he maintained he was "enthusiastic about the nonprofit structure" after Musk threatened to withdraw funding—an assertion Musk's team argues was misleading to ensure donations continued while leadership secretly plotted a different direction. Hundreds of pages of discovery materials, including emails, texts, and Slack messages from depositions unsealed in autumn 2025, indicate that OpenAI’s leadership "publicly stated one thing while planning something entirely different privately." A text Altman sent to Musk in February 2023, following Musk's public criticism of OpenAI, read: "You’re my hero, and that’s how it feels when you attack OpenAI." The witness list features prominent figures from Silicon Valley, including Musk, Altman, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati, co-founder Ilya Sutskever, and Shivon Zilis.

      **The defense**

      OpenAI has branded the lawsuit as "baseless" and described it as a "harassment campaign driven by ego, jealousy, and a desire to hinder a competitor." The competitor in question is xAI, the AI company Musk established in 2023, which has recently merged with SpaceX in an all-stock deal valuing the new entity at $1.25 trillion. OpenAI's defense will argue that Musk's motivations are more about competition than charity, noting that he left the board in February 2018, backed out of a larger planned donation, and lacks the standing to influence the organization’s structure years after his exit. Judge Gonzalez Rogers remarked that "this country appreciates competition," hinting at potential self-interest in Musk's claims.

      OpenAI also asserts that the conversion was reviewed by attorneys general in California and Delaware, stating that the nonprofit entity now operates as the OpenAI Foundation, holding approximately 26% of the company's valuation (around $130 billion), and retains oversight over mission alignment and the ability to appoint members to the for-profit board. The Foundation's announcement of a $25 billion commitment during OpenAI's recapitalization positions it among the world’s most financially endowed philanthropic organizations. OpenAI contends this structure preserves its charitable mission while enabling the necessary investment scale to advance artificial general intelligence. All parties, including Altman, Brockman, and Microsoft, deny any wrongdoing.

      **The structure**

      The trial is structured unusually; the nine-member jury will only provide an advisory verdict on liability. Ultimately, Judge Gonzalez Rogers, not the jury, will determine both liability and remedies. Opening arguments are set for Tuesday, with the liability phase continuing until mid