Elon Musk is demanding up to $134 billion (€115.45 billion) in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, accusing the companies of profiting unfairly from his early involvement in the AI startup.
Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015 but left the company in 2018 following disagreements over its transition from a non-profit organisation to a profit-driven enterprise supported by Microsoft.
The billionaire claims his early contributions, including $38 million (€32.74 million) in funding, networking assistance, and recruitment efforts, entitle him to a portion of OpenAI’s current valuation, which is estimated at roughly $500 billion (€430.8 billion).
According to court documents filed in California on Friday, Musk seeks compensation of $65.5 billion (€56.43 billion) to $109.43 billion (€94.28 billion) from OpenAI, based on expert calculations relating to his initial investments.
OpenAI dismissed Musk’s claim as “not serious” in a statement to Bloomberg and alleged that this was his fourth attempt to pursue the same case. The company accused Musk of engaging in a broader pattern of harassment aimed at hindering OpenAI and promoting his competing AI startup, xAI.
Musk is also demanding a payment of $13.3 billion (€11.46 billion) to $25.06 billion (€21.59 billion) from Microsoft, OpenAI’s largest partner and investor.
