The crux of the claim is Musk\u2019s assertion that he was \u201cdeceived\u201d into investing $38\u00a0million into OpenAI<\/a>, which was founded in 2015 as a non-profit body to ensure that AI benefits humanity. \u201cOpenAI has abandoned its \u2018irrevocable\u2019 non-profit mission in the pursuit of profit,\u201d he argues. <\/p>\n The ChatGPT<\/a> maker counters that Musk himself supported the creation of a for-profit structure during his time at the company, and that the lawsuit is largely an attempt to hobble a competitor.<\/p>\n OpenAI\u2019s lawyers have accused Musk of using \u201cevasive tactics\u201d after he initially filed 26 claims against the company in November 2024. That list has since been whittled down to four: unjust enrichment, fraud, constructive fraud, and breach of charitable trust. <\/p>\n \u201cTrial begins in five days but [the] plaintiff still refuses to state plainly what claims he will pursue and what remedies he will seek,\u201d OpenAI\u2019s lawyers said.<\/p>\n On Friday, a California judge dismissed Musk\u2019s fraud accusations but the trial will proceed on his breach of charitable trust and unjust enrichment claims. Musk has said previously that dismissing the claims would keep jurors focused on his goal of ensuring that OpenAI benefited humanity, rather than acting as a \u201cwealth machine\u201d.<\/p>\n Sam Altman<\/p>\n For Altman, 41, the stakes could hardly be higher. Musk is demanding that Altman be removed from his position at a time when AI\u2019s capabilities are rapidly accelerating, and the company itself is thought to be preparing for an initial public offering. Musk\u2019s lawyers argue that the removal of a charity\u2019s directors is a \u201ccommon remedy\u201d when they fail to carry out the charity\u2019s public mission.\u00a0<\/p>\n Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, Altman has been a globe-trotting spokesman for AI, but defeat in this case could remove him from his position of immense influence at a crucial juncture for the industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n Musk also said he wants Altman stripped of \u201call equity and other personal financial benefits\u201d. This may not be as much of a blow as one might expect because Altman claims to have no direct stake in OpenAI and draws a salary of just $76,000. Altman is still a billionaire but his fortune comes from the investments he made in companies like Reddit, Stripe and Airbnb<\/a>.<\/p>\n The unknown risk for Altman is whether the case will reveal damaging details about his leadership. He was famously ousted in a boardroom coup back in 2023, only to be reinstated a few days later<\/a>. Questions about his leadership style have never gone away, and could be intensified by the trial.\u00a0<\/p>\n Greg Brockman<\/p>\n Brockman, 38, a co-founder of OpenAI alongside Altman, Musk, and Ilya Sutskever, could also be removed from his leadership position at OpenAI, where he currently serves as president. Musk is also seeking to have his equity stripped, which is thought to be worth over $1 billion.\u00a0<\/p>\n Court documents have already surfaced showing some of Brockman\u2019s journal entries which have proved embarrassing for OpenAI. Around the time of Musk\u2019s departure from the company, Brockman wrote: \u201cIt\u2019d be wrong to steal the non-profit from him [Musk]. to convert to a b-corp without him. that\u2019d be pretty morally bankrupt. and he\u2019s really not an idiot.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHis story will correctly be that we weren\u2019t honest with him in the end about still wanting to do the for profit just without him.\u201d <\/p>\n Those diary entries, which were not meant to see the light of day, have become central to Musk\u2019s case.\u00a0<\/p>\n Elon Musk<\/p>\n For Musk the downside risks are less obvious than for either Altman or Brockman, but the potential upside is significant.\u00a0<\/p>\n Alongside the departure of Altman and Brockman, Musk is demanding that the company be returned to its non-profit structure. Musk\u2019s own AI company, xAI, would clearly stand to benefit from any limitations imposed on OpenAI\u2019s ability to raise funding, a fact which the ChatGPT maker has not been slow to point out. \u201cHis lawsuit remains nothing more than a harassment campaign that\u2019s driven by ego, jealousy and a desire to slow down a competitor,\u201d the company posted on X earlier in April.<\/p>\n Business newsletter<\/p>\n The business editor\u2019s exclusive analysis of all the latest financial and economic news.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tSign up with one click<\/p>\n The Tesla and SpaceX founder is also seeking $134\u00a0billion in damages from OpenAI and its lead investor Microsoft, arguing that they are \u201cwrongful gains\u201d the companies received as a result of his early financial support for OpenAI.\u00a0Musk has suggested that any damages should ultimately be directed back toward OpenAI\u2019s non-profit arm, but the figure has been questioned. At a pre-trial hearing in California last year, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said Musk had been \u201cpulling these numbers out of the air\u201d.<\/p>\n The high-profile case will nevertheless prove a distraction for Musk as the date for SpaceX\u2019s initial public offering approaches. The record listing is slated for the early summer, to coincide with Musk\u2019s 55th birthday in June and a rare planetary alignment.\u00a0<\/p>\n Marc Toberoff<\/p>\n Another key figure in the Silicon Valley legal drama is a Malibu lawyer who is no stranger to the spotlight. Marc Toberoff, Musk\u2019s lawyer, has been advising Musk in his long-running feud with Altman. <\/p>\n A Vanity Fair profile in February noted that Toberoff, a movie producer with credits on Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and Bad Boys: Ride or Die, wrote an earlier legal complaint that read like a Hollywood script: \u201cElon Musk\u2019s case against Sam Altman and OpenAI is a textbook tale of altruism versus greed. The perfidy and deceit are of Shakespearean proportions.\u201d Discussing the legal battle, Toberoff said: \u201cI can just imagine the other side looking me up and going, \u2018Who is this guy?\u2019 But I\u2019ve been underestimated before. In fact, that\u2019s my secret weapon.\u201d<\/p>\n Toberoff is the son of a first-generation Jewish immigrant who became a prominent medical malpractice lawyer in New York. He started his legal career at the New York firm Kelley Drye & Warren. A founding partner of Toberoff & Associates, he is better known as a leading attorney in the area of copyright and entertainment litigation and has successfully represented clients including the children of the musicians James Brown and Ray Charles, and the heirs of Jerry Siegel, the comic book writer who co-created Superman.<\/p>\n Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz<\/p>\n OpenAI is working with a roster of elite American law firms including Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. Founded in 1965, the firm is known for inventing the \u201cpoison pill\u201d defence, or stockholder rights plan, to thwart hostile takeovers. It also has a reputation for managing some of the world\u2019s largest and most complex mergers, including advising Warner Bros Discovery on its $110\u00a0billion acquisition by Paramount Skydance<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"Sam](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/f93df996-5ef9-48a9-aea1-503568a52b0e.jpg\")
Sam AltmanJAMIE MCCARTHY\/WIREIMAGE<\/p>\n![\"Greg](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/8e82d778-d7dc-4613-b754-b04bfcb80de6.jpg\")
Greg Brockman with OpenAI team membersGreg Brockman<\/p>\n![\"Elon](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/a3f574dd-3295-4139-a743-63cf1bc19e94.jpg\")
Elon MuskMARIO ANZUONI\/REUTERS<\/p>\n![\"Marc](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/6e091c9c-9d2b-4ab2-9124-a0849260dcd4.jpg\")
Marc Toberoff, Musk\u2019s lawyerJC OLIVERA\/VARIETY\/GETTY IMAGES<\/p>\n