Elon Musk has reportedly amended his lawsuit against ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, saying any damages awarded in the case should go to the company’s charitable arm instead of him. According to a Wall Street Journal report, the amendment also asks that OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman be removed from the OpenAI nonprofit board. Musk has also requested Altman and OpenAI President Greg Brockman to turn over any equity or other financial benefits to the charity arm.The move marks the latest escalation in the ongoing dispute between Musk and OpenAI. The case is expected to go to trial later this month in Oakland, California.
Elon Musk seeks $150 billion in damages from OpenAI
OpenAI was founded in 2015 as a non-profit company with Elon Musk as co-chair. The tech billionaire departed in 2019 alleging the AI company of undermining its original mission to benefit humanity. He later went on to file a lawsuit against OpenAI which is set to go on trial later this month. Elon Musk, the world’s richest persona has amended the lawsuit, is seeking more than $150 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, its partner and investor, arguing that OpenAI strayed from its nonprofit mission and defrauded him as a donor in seeking to convert it into a for-profit company, WSJ report said.As part of the amendment, Musk has made it clear that “is not seeking a single dollar for himself,” said his lawyer, Marc Toberoff. “He is asking the court to return everything that was taken from a public charity—and to make sure the people responsible are never in a position to do this again,” Toberoff said in a statement as quoted by the publication. “That was the essence of his complaint from the outset of this case, until OpenAI’s spin doctors got to work distorting it. This filing sets the record straight.”
OpenAI calls Elon Musk’s allegations driven by “ego, jealousy”
In a strongly worded statement shared on X, OpenAI said:“Today, at the eleventh hour, Elon lodged a court filing pretending to change his tune about attacking the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation.The truth is that this case has always been about Elon generating more power and more money for what he wants. Having increasingly realized that his attempt to damage the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation rests on a baseless legal case, Elon is once again trying to change the narrative and save face as the trial approaches. His lawsuit remains nothing more than a harassment campaign that’s driven by ego, jealousy and a desire to slow down a competitor.”
