Federal jury rejects Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI over statute of limitations

A federal jury in Oakland, California, has rejected Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, ending a closely watched trial that centered on whether the company abandoned its original nonprofit mission. According to Bloomberg, TechCrunch, the BBC and Wired, the nine-member jury found that Musk brought the case too late, deciding that his claims were barred by the statute of limitations. The judge then adopted the verdict, giving OpenAI and Altman a major legal victory.

Musk had argued that OpenAI strayed from its founding purpose of developing artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity after it created a for-profit structure in 2019. He said the shift betrayed the company’s original agreement and turned a public-minded research group into a business focused on profit. OpenAI and Altman denied wrongdoing, and the case became one of the most high-profile disputes in the fast-moving AI industry, pitting two of Silicon Valley’s most prominent figures against each other.

The jury reached its decision quickly, after hearing days of testimony and arguments. As reported by Wired and TechCrunch, jurors spent only about two hours deliberating before returning a unanimous verdict for OpenAI. The key issue was not whether the company had changed, but whether Musk had waited too long to sue. Once the jury concluded that he had, it did not need to address the underlying claims about OpenAI’s mission or governance.

The ruling matters because it removes, at least for now, a major legal threat to OpenAI as it continues to expand commercially. Fast Company reported that the decision clears an important obstacle for the company as it considers an initial public offering, or IPO, which would allow it to sell shares to the public. The verdict also comes amid intense competition in generative AI, where OpenAI faces pressure from rivals including Anthropic, while also navigating questions about how an AI company can balance public benefit with commercial growth.

Musk said he would appeal, according to Business Insider, arguing that Altman enriched himself and that the company’s original mission was improperly diverted. The BBC noted that the loss adds to a string of courtroom setbacks for Musk, who has been involved in several legal battles across his business empire. For OpenAI, however, the outcome is a significant reprieve: one that strengthens Altman’s position and reduces legal uncertainty around the company’s corporate structure, at least unless an appeals court revives the dispute.