Elon Musk Had A ‘Hair-Raising’ Idea To Pass OpenAI On His Kids, Sam Altman Says

Sam Altman took it to the witness to protect his reputation in Musk v. Altman lawsuit on Tuesday, where Elon Musk’s lawyers objected OpenAI The CEO and many hours of questions about his alleged history fraudulent behavior.

The cross-examination was an important victory for Musk, who has so far struggled to make a convincing case. Tuesday’s testimony included a heated exchange in which the CEO of OpenAI had to respond to allegations by former colleagues that he had a problem with. unreliable.

Clarifying this evidence is not only necessary for Musk to win the lawsuit, but also to beat OpenAI in the public court. A few days before the trial began, Musk texted OpenAI President Greg Brockman and he told her that he and Altman would soon be “the most hated men in America.”

Musk’s lawsuit accuses Altman of successfully stealing OpenAI’s grant, taking Musk’s $38 million donation to the nonprofit and using it to build a business with a profit of more than $850 billion.

However, there was little evidence Tuesday to close the gaps in Musk’s case. Altman and Sam Teller, Musk’s former chief of staff, testified on Tuesday that they did not recall Musk ever putting any special features on his contributions to OpenAI. In addition, it seems increasingly likely that Musk filed his lawsuit too late, many years after he made the last investment in OpenAI and began to suspect that the organization had breached its integrity. At that time, the statute of limitations had already expired.

Brockman and his wife, Anna, sat in the mirror next to OpenAI’s future CEO, Joshua Achiam. While Altman and Brockman were present to cross-examine Musk on the witness stand, Musk did not testify for Altman. (Flight records show He was heading to the Washington, DC area on Tuesday to fly to China with President Donald Trump.)

Before answering questions from Musk’s lawyers, Altman had a chance to tell his side of the story, answering gentle questions from OpenAI’s lawyers. Dressed in a purple tie, Altman portrayed himself as a businessman and entrepreneur who was always excited about, and concerned about, the power of artificial intelligence.

Altman testified that Musk has been very interested in improving OpenAI. He recalled the “hair-raising moment” when Musk suggested that control of OpenAI should pass to his children if Musk were to die. “We weren’t happy about it,” Altman said. Altman said that Musk’s attempt in 2018 to start an AI unit inside Tesla – and give him the chance to drive it – seemed like a “vague, vague threat” that Musk would break OpenAI with or without him.

Shoot Altman

Steven Molo, Musk’s lawyer, was quick to answer his questions, asking Altman: “Are you completely honest?” as his first question. Altman replied that he believed so, and Molo immediately asked if the jury should believe the evidence he had given. Altman replied, “That’s up to them. Here’s the heated exchange that followed, as WIRED can capture:

Wharf: Do you always tell the truth?

Altman: I believe there is a time in my life that I have never experienced.

Wharf: Do you lie to promote your business?

Altman: No.

Wharf: Have you misled the people you do business with?