Ilya Sutskever reveals a $7 billion stake in OpenAI during his testimony in the lawsuit involving Musk.

      The former chief scientist of OpenAI, who now leads Safe Superintelligence, provided this figure under oath, positioning him as one of the largest individual shareholders in the company. Ilya Sutskever, who previously held the role of chief scientist at OpenAI and currently runs Safe Superintelligence Inc., revealed during his testimony in the Musk-OpenAI lawsuit on Monday that his ownership stake in OpenAI is valued at about $7 billion, as reported by Reuters and other news sources.

      This revelation establishes Sutskever as one of the top individual shareholders in OpenAI, alongside Sam Altman and a few early investors. Sutskever co-founded OpenAI and was one of its most referenced researchers before departing in May 2024 amid a board dispute that temporarily ousted Altman from his CEO position.

      Sutskever's testimony was part of Elon Musk's ongoing legal action against OpenAI, which contests the organization's shift from a non-profit research institution to a capped-profit and commercial model, requesting the court to reconsider the corporate governance that facilitated this transition. He was brought in as a witness due to his co-founder status and his role on the board during the contentious time. The $7 billion figure emerged in response to inquiries about his current financial ties to the company. OpenAI recently concluded its latest primary funding round at an $852 billion post-money valuation.

      Details regarding Sutskever's stake had not been publicly disclosed prior to this. Commentary concerning the composition of OpenAI's cap-table has been sparse; secondary market activity has suggested a significant difference between the primary round valuation and recent secondary transactions.

      Sutskever’s current company, Safe Superintelligence, achieved a valuation of $32 billion in its latest funding round, having garnered over $3 billion without any public product. The focus of the venture, as indicated by its name, is on developing safe superintelligence, operating purely in a research capacity under Sutskever’s leadership.

      The revelation of Sutskever’s OpenAI stake holds procedural importance for the Musk case in various ways. It clarifies the magnitude of the financial interest retained by the original founding members following OpenAI’s restructuring; it supplies Musk’s legal team with an argument that OpenAI’s shift from a non-profit benefited a limited group of insiders; and it complicates Sutskever’s standing as a witness when his testimony relates to the value of an asset he owns.

      Legal documents have not specified the exact nature of Sutskever’s stake (whether it comprises common shares, preferred shares, or profit-participation units) or the vesting schedule. OpenAI has refrained from commenting on his testimony due to the ongoing litigation, and Sutskever has not made any public statements regarding the disclosure.

      The Musk case is currently being examined in the Northern District of California, with the trial set for the fall, although several procedural motions are still pending. The court has suggested the possibility of merging Musk’s claims with similar shareholder and stakeholder lawsuits filed in late 2025.

      The $7 billion valuation is significant in absolute terms, even in light of OpenAI’s recent worth. Representing an approximate 0.8% stake, it firmly places Sutskever among the top individual shareholders of OpenAI, although his holdings are less than those of Altman and substantially lower than the institutional stakes held by Microsoft, SoftBank, Amazon, and Nvidia.