A jury sided with Sam Altman and OpenAI in a lawsuit brought by Elon Musk alleging the company improperly shifted from a nonprofit mission to a for-profit structure. The verdict followed a three-week trial in federal court in Oakland, California, and removes a major legal overhang for OpenAI’s planned IPO efforts. Musk had sought damages exceeding $180 billion, removal of Altman and President Greg Brockman, and reversal of OpenAI’s governance changes. OpenAI argued Musk supported the for-profit

2026-05-19

A jury sided with Sam Altman and OpenAI in a lawsuit brought by Elon Musk alleging the company improperly shifted from a nonprofit mission to a for-profit structure. The verdict followed a three-week trial in federal court in Oakland, California, and removes a major legal overhang for OpenAI’s planned IPO efforts. Musk had sought damages exceeding $180 billion, removal of Altman and President Greg Brockman, and reversal of OpenAI’s governance changes. OpenAI argued Musk supported the for-profit structure before leaving to launch a rival AI venture.