Elon Musk Had ‘Hair-Raising’ Idea of Passing OpenAI On to His Kids, Sam Altman Says

Key Points:

• Sam Altman testified in the Musk v. Altman trial, defending his reputation against Elon Musk's allegations of deceptive behavior and misuse of $38 million donated to OpenAI, which Musk claims was turned into a for-profit business worth over $850 billion.
• Altman and Musk’s former chief of staff testified they do not recall Musk placing conditions on his donations, and legal experts suggest Musk may have filed the lawsuit too late, possibly after the statute of limitations expired.
• During cross-examination, Musk’s lawyer questioned Altman extensively about past accusations of dishonesty from former colleagues and his financial interests in companies with ties to OpenAI, including a nearly $2 billion stake in Helion and $600 million in Stripe.
• Altman portrayed Musk as obsessed with control over OpenAI, recalling Musk’s proposal that control pass to his children if he died and describing Musk’s 2018 attempt to create an AI unit within Tesla as a threat to OpenAI’s survival.
• The trial also highlighted a power struggle over OpenAI’s governance, with Musk’s lawyer questioning the nonprofit board’s authority to appoint and fire executives, referencing texts between Altman, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and others about restructuring the board after Altman’s brief firing.