OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Elon Musk's attorneys took on with OpenAI in court Tuesday as a federal judge weighed the billionaire's ask for a court order that would obstruct the ChatGPT maker from converting itself to a for-profit company.
U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said it was a "stretch" for Musk to claim he will be irreparably damaged if she does not intervene to stop OpenAI from moving on with its transition from a nonprofit lab to a for-profit corporation.
But the judge likewise raised concerns about OpenAI and its relationship with service partner Microsoft and said she wouldn't stop the case from relocating to trial as quickly as next year so a jury can decide.
"It is plausible that what Mr. Musk is stating holds true. We ´ ll find out. He ´ ll rest on the stand," she said.
Musk, an early OpenAI investor and board member, took legal action against the synthetic intelligence company in 2015, initially in a California state court and later in federal court, declaring it had betrayed its founding aims as a nonprofit research lab benefiting the general public good. Musk had actually invested about $45 million in the start-up from its starting up until 2018, his attorney said Tuesday.
Musk intensified the legal dispute late last year, adding brand-new claims and defendants and asking for a court order that would stop OpenAI ´ s prepares to convert itself into a for-profit service more fully. Musk also added his own AI company, xAI, as a plaintiff.
Also targeted by Musk's claim is OpenAI's close service partner Microsoft and tech business owner Reid Hoffman, a previous OpenAI board member who also rests on Microsoft's board.
Gonzalez Rogers said she has a high bar for approving the kind of initial injunction that Musk wants but hasn't yet ruled on the demand. She did state she had "considerable concerns" with two individuals connected to Microsoft on OpenAI's board - Hoffman and longtime Microsoft executive Deanna Templeton, who was a "non-voting observer."
"So you desire me to think that she was sitting there listening to all the discussions and not telling anyone? What would the point be for her to sit there and listen to everybody, if not to communicate what she was listening? There would be no point for her to be there, which is why she really ought to not be there," she said.
Hoffman, a co-founder of LinkedIn, wiki.whenparked.com has been on Microsoft ´ s board since quickly after the tech giant bought the job networking website. He stepped down from OpenAI's board in 2023 to avoid conflicts with his AI startup, Inflection.
Templeton, who Musk likewise called as an accused, library.kemu.ac.ke was added as a non-voting member of OpenAI ´ s board in the aftermath of Altman ´ s ouster after Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella sought more stability on the board. But months later on, she was dropped from the OpenAI board as U.S. antitrust enforcers were expressing concerns about such plans on business boards.
The judge has actually dealt with a number of tech market cases including Apple's fight with Epic Games, it-viking.ch though she said Tuesday that Musk's case is "absolutely nothing like" that one. That case was likewise the last time she gave an initial injunction, in 2020, gratisafhalen.be eight months before the case went to trial.
Then-President Barack Obama selected Gonzalez Rogers to the federal bench in 2011.
Tuesday's hearing was initially set for January however was delayed after Musk's attorney Marc Toberoff said his house was destroyed in the Pacific Palisades wildfire.
Musk, who did not go to the hearing, has actually alleged in the claim that the business are breaking the terms of his foundational contributions to the charity. Judge Gonzalez Rogers called it a "stretch" to claim "irreversible damage" to Musk, and called the case "billionaires vs. billionaires." She questioned why Musk invested tens of millions in OpenAI without a composed agreement. Toberoff said it was since the relationship in between Altman and ratemywifey.com Musk at the time was "built on trust" and the 2 were extremely close.
"That is just a lot of money" to invest "on a handshake," the judge said.
OpenAI has actually said Musk ´ s requested court order would "cripple OpenAI ´ s business"and objective to the benefit of Musk and his own AI business and is based upon "far-fetched" .
At the heart of the dispute is a 2017 internal power battle at the recently established startup that led to Altman becoming OpenAI ´ s CEO
. Emails revealed by OpenAI show Musk had actually also looked for to be CEO and grew disappointed after 2 other OpenAI co-founders said he would hold too much power as a major investor and president if the start-up succeeded in its objective to attain better-than-human AI called artificial basic intelligence, or AGI. Musk has long voiced concerns about how sophisticated forms of AI could threaten humanity.
Altman ultimately was successful in ending up being CEO and has actually remained so except for photorum.eclat-mauve.fr a period in 2023 when he was fired and then restored days later on after the board that ousted him was replaced.
OpenAI has actually sought to show Musk ´ s early assistance for the idea of making OpenAI a for-profit business so it might raise money for the hardware and surgiteams.com computer power that AI requires.
Musk is not the only one tough OpenAI's for-profit transition. Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms has actually asked California's chief law officer to block it, and the office of Delaware's attorney general of the United States has said it is evaluating the conversion.
It was unclear Tuesday when the case might go to trial. Musk's lawyers at first said they would be all set by June after some back-and-forth with the 2 sides the judge suggested it probably will not be until June 2026 at the earliest, however likely early 2027.
O'Brien reported from Providence, Rhode Island.
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Judge Says Elon Musk's Claims of Harm from OpenAI Are A 'stretch'.
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