Elon Musk loses lawsuit against OpenAI in unanimous verdict

OAKLAND, Calif.— Jurors on Monday handed Elon Musk a loss in the landmark trial over the future of OpenAI – deeming the artificial intelligence ‌giant not liable ​to the world’s richest person for having allegedly abandoned its mission to benefit humanity.  In a unanimous verdict that was reached just hours after it began deliberations, the nine-member, federal jury said Musk had brought his case too late.The verdict caps three weeks of proceedings that captivated Silicon Valley and beyond and featured some of the biggest names in tech.

Along with Altman, Brockman and Musk, the trial featured testimony from Musk advisor and romantic partner Shivon Zillis, OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Musk — who donated $38 million to OpenAI years before launching his own high-profile artificial intelligence project, xAI — sought about $150 billion in damages and a court order unwinding OpenAI’s for-profit status.Musk’s lawsuit, which alleges that Brockman, Altman and OpenAI violated the company’s charitable mission when it launched a for-profit entity and raised billions to help it grow into the juggernaut it is today.The suit also accused Microsoft of aiding and abetting the scheme by pumping some $13 billion into OpenAI’s for-profit arm.  In his testimony during the trial’s first week, Musk said “This lawsuit is very simple: It is not OK to steal a charity.” Musk repeated the versions of the phrase throughout his time on the witness stand. Musk also at one point texted Altman after news of one of Microsoft’s investments into OpenAI became public, calling the agreement a “bait and switch.”Altman and the other defendants said throughout the trial that Musk was well aware of and even supported OpenAI’s for-profit endeavors.

Altman’s lawyers provided evidence that appeared to show Musk agreeing that an entity that could raise traditional venture style funding in exchange for equity was the only way they...