Musk vs OpenAI trial begins Monday over non-profit betrayal claims

Elon Musk's lawsuit accusing OpenAI of betraying its non-profit mission heads for trial Monday with jury selection. The legal clash pits the world's richest person against a startup he once backed and now competes with in the AI sector, as his xAI lab's Grok chatbot rivals OpenAI's ChatGPT.

The case stems from Musk's 2015 co-founding of OpenAI as a non-profit lab whose technology "would belong to the world." However, OpenAI established a commercial subsidiary and received billions from Microsoft to fund data centers. Musk claims he was deceived about OpenAI's altruistic mission, while OpenAI counters the breakup was due to Musk's quest for absolute control.

Musk initially sought $134 billion in damages but has renounced personal benefit, pledging any award to OpenAI's nonprofit. The trial will decide whether OpenAI broke promises or "smartly rode the technology to glory." Musk also calls for the ouster of CEO Sam Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman.

With AI development accelerating globally, this case sets crucial precedents about whether AI technology should serve privileged few or society at large. How should Nigeria position itself in the AI governance debate while developing its own AI capabilities?

SOURCE: https://www.channelstv.com/2026/04/27/stage-set-for-elon-musks-court-battle-with-openai/