Elon Musk Testifies That He Started OpenAI to Prevent a ‘Terminator Outcome’

Elon Musk took the stand Tuesday in a San Francisco federal courtroom, testifying that he helped launch OpenAI in 2015 to prevent artificial intelligence from spiraling into a catastrophic 'Terminator outcome.' Musk, alongside co-founder Sam Altman, appeared together for the first time in the high-stakes trial over OpenAI's evolution from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity. Musk described his long-standing fears about AI surpassing human intelligence, which he said drove him to lobby governments and eventually create OpenAI as an open-source nonprofit counterweight to Google. He recalled Google co-founder Larry Page calling him 'speciesist' for prioritizing humanity, adding, 'What would be the opposite of Google? An open-source nonprofit.'

OpenAI's attorney, William Savitt, countered that Musk never had a binding promise that OpenAI would remain a nonprofit, and that he was aware of plans for large corporate investments as early as 2018. Savitt pointed out that Musk only sued after founding his own AI company, xAI, in 2023, and argued the statute of limitations had expired. He also noted that Musk pledged $1 billion but delivered only $38 million over five years, and that Musk sought to absorb OpenAI into Tesla or take control himself. The trial's outcome could reshape OpenAI's governance and complicate its plans for an initial public offering.