The second week of the federal trial between Elon Musk and OpenAI saw former board member Shivon Zilis testify that Musk attempted to recruit OpenAI CEO Sam Altman for a new AI venture at Tesla. Zilis, who is also the mother of four of Musk's children, stated that Musk asked her to facilitate communication with OpenAI's founders during a period of internal tension. She also revealed that Musk had asked Andrej Karpathy to compile a list of top OpenAI talent for potential recruitment.
OpenAI's legal team used Zilis's testimony and other evidence to counter Musk's central claim that he was deceived into donating to the nonprofit and that the company improperly shifted to a for-profit model. Musk alleges that OpenAI, co-founded by him and Altman in 2015, violated its original mission to develop artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity. He seeks the removal of Altman and Greg Brockman from their leadership positions and the restoration of OpenAI as a full nonprofit.
During her testimony, Zilis described her role as a liaison among OpenAI's co-founders. She stated that board discussions in 2017 and 2018 considered various for-profit structures. Emails presented in court suggested that an email from Sam Altman stating, "I remain enthusiastic about the nonprofit structure!" did not represent a binding promise. Zilis herself resigned from OpenAI's nonprofit board in 2023, citing Musk's launch of his own AI company, xAI, and its subsequent recruitment of OpenAI staff. She texted a friend that "When the father of your babies starts a competitive effort and starts recruiting from OpenAI there is nothing to be done."
OpenAI's defense has emphasized Musk's own past support for for-profit structures within the company. Evidence presented indicated that Musk had previously proposed for-profit structures in 2015 and directed advisors to register a for-profit entity in 2017. OpenAI President Greg Brockman testified that Musk pushed for OpenAI to create a for-profit entity and sought absolute control, storming out of a 2017 meeting after his demands for majority equity and board control were rejected. Musk's lawyers, however, presented diary entries from Brockman that suggested personal financial ambitions and potential conflicts of interest.
The trial has also heard testimony regarding concerns about OpenAI's AI safety practices and Sam Altman's leadership. Former board member Helen Toner testified via deposition that Altman did not provide the board with "candid and complete information about the safety risks" of OpenAI's products. Mira Murati, former chief technology officer at OpenAI, accused Altman of deception and fostering executive infighting, warning that the company was at risk of collapse during its 2023 leadership crisis. Murati stated that Altman's management style involved saying "one thing to one person and completely the opposite to another person," creating chaos and deception.
Zilis confirmed that she had signed a confidentiality agreement with Musk regarding their children, but she informed OpenAI leadership immediately when the information was about to be published. She stated that her relationship with Musk, which is now romantic, did not influence her duties as an OpenAI board member. The court heard that Altman had sought Zilis's advice on whether to publicly praise Musk on X, formerly Twitter, in February 2023.
Musk's lawsuit, filed in August 2024, claims that OpenAI's shift toward commercial interests violated the charitable trust established by his donations, totaling approximately $38 million between 2015 and 2018. He is seeking the removal of Altman and Brockman and an order to reverse OpenAI's corporate restructuring. OpenAI contends that Musk's lawsuit is an attempt to damage a competitor after the founding of his own AI company, xAI.
The trial is scheduled to continue with testimony from Ilya Sutskever and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.