Los Ángeles.- Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, said this Wednesday in the trial against OpenAI that he was “a fool” to fund the foundation of the technology company, which he sued for changing its initial non-profit mission.
«I was a fool who provided them with free funding to create a ‘startup’… I gave them 38 million dollars in essentially free funding to create what would become an 800 billion dollar company,» declared the billionaire, according to information cited by the New York Times.
Musk testifies for the second day in a federal court in Oakland, California, in a legal battle that began in 2024 against the parent company of ChatGPT, its co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, and its main partner, Microsoft, for breach of contract and unjust enrichment.
Fotografía de archivo del director ejecutivo de OpenAI, Sam Altman. EFE/John G. Mabanglo
Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI co-founder has reiterated on the stand that he was deceived by his former friend Altman into donating money to the OpenAI foundation, conceived in 2015 as a non-profit company.
The Reason for Elon Musk’s Change of Opinion on OpenAI
Last year, the technology company obtained regulatory approval to restructure its core business and transform it into a for-profit corporation, although it still has a hybrid configuration with limited profit.
The civil lawsuit demands that OpenAI pay Musk $150 billion, the dismissal of Altman, and that the company return to its non-profit status.
OpenAI has described the lawsuit as an attempt motivated by envy that seeks to hinder a direct competitor through the use of the judicial system.
In that sense, Musk defended in court the creation in 2023 of xAI, his artificial intelligence company recently merged with Spacex.
«I would say that, at this point, it’s technically a competitor, but much smaller than OpenAI», Musk stated, according to the New York newspaper.
The billionaire acknowledged that xAI was founded as a company seeking economic benefits.
The close relationship between Musk and Trump comes to light in the lawsuit against OpenAI
The close relationship between tech magnate Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump was once again evident this Wednesday during the trial against OpenAI, in which the businessman seeks to sanction the company for, according to him, having deviated from its original mission of operating as a non-profit entity.
The richest man in the world testified for the second day in a federal court in Oakland, California, in a legal battle that began in 2024 against the parent company of ChatGPT, its co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, and its main partner, Microsoft, for breach of contract and unjust enrichment.
In the cross-examination to which Musk was subjected today, OpenAI’s lead lawyer, William Savitt, reminded the jury that the magnate maintains close ties with the US president and with David Sacks, who has advised Trump on artificial intelligence, according to information gathered by The New York Times.
Although Musk’s lawyers argued in the hearing that the billionaire’s relationship with the president is irrelevant to the case, the jury, composed of nine people, could be influenced when it comes to the verdict.
The businessman was also part of Trump’s close circle after his return to the White House in 2025, when he took on an advisory role in technological and innovation issues, which strengthened his influence in debates on artificial intelligence and public policy in the United States.
