Musk's Lawsuit Against OpenAI Questioned by Judge: $134 Billion Damages Claim "Fabricated Out of Thin Air"

Elon Musk

Tech Sina News, Beijing Time, March 14 — According to The Financial Times, in the over $130 billion damages lawsuit filed by Elon Musk against OpenAI and its partner Microsoft, the presiding judge hinted that the billionaire’s claim was based on “fabricated numbers,” but still allowed him to submit the case to a jury for trial.

At the pre-trial hearing on Friday, OpenAI’s lawyers attempted to persuade Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers to dismiss the testimony of an expert witness supporting Musk’s $134 billion damages claim.

Musk alleges that OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman betrayed their non-profit origins after his charitable donation to the AI lab ten years ago, constituting fraud. The trial is scheduled to begin in April this year.

“The jury will understand that (Musk’s expert witness) is fabricating these numbers out of thin air,” Rogers said at the pre-trial hearing in the Northern District of California. “Do I find this convincing? Not really. Based on what I’ve seen, do I find this particularly convincing? Also not really.”

However, Rogers did not grant OpenAI’s motion to dismiss the expert’s testimony, stating she would not decide based solely on a five-page motion, and would allow the jury to hear the evidence.

The calculation of damages is the core of Musk’s lawsuit. If accepted by the jury, OpenAI could be liable for $109 billion, while Microsoft might have to pay $25 billion.

Rogers stated in court on Friday that if she agreed to dismiss Musk’s expert witness testimony, “then this trial would be over because there would be no evidence of damages, right?”

Musk’s $134 billion damages claim is based on analysis by expert witness C. Paul Wazzan. Wazzan, an economist at Berkeley Research Group and a venture capitalist, concluded that Musk’s early donation of $38 million, combined with his non-monetary contributions to OpenAI, accounted for 50% to 75% of the value of OpenAI’s non-profit division. This non-profit holds slightly over a quarter of the profit-making OpenAI shares, which have recently been valued at $730 billion.

OpenAI’s lawyers attempted to exclude parts of Wazzan’s testimony. William Savitt, a partner at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, argued on Friday that Wazzan’s conclusions lacked a reasonable basis and questioned his analytical methods.

The case is scheduled for trial on April 28. At that time, Musk’s lawyers will attempt to prove that OpenAI and Altman violated contracts and committed fraud against Musk. (Author: Xiao Yu)