Elon Musk has escalated his legal battle with Sam Altman by amending a lawsuit against OpenAI. The Wall Street Journal reports that Musk is now seeking the removal of CEO Sam Altman from OpenAI’s non-profit board, as well as President Greg Brockman.
The amendment also requests that any potential damages be redirected to OpenAI’s charitable arm instead of going to Musk himself. This move highlights the deepening rift between the two tech icons and comes ahead of a trial in Oakland, California later this month.
Musk is seeking over $150 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft on allegations that they have abandoned their original mandate to develop open-source Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). He also claims he was tricked into providing early funding worth $38 million under the guise of a nonprofit structure that shifted towards a commercial, profit-based model.
Musk’s lawyers stated that they are seeking an order removing Altman as a director from OpenAI’s non-profit board and both Altman and Brockman as officers of the for-profit company. The lawyer also said he is asking the court to return everything taken from a public charity and ensure those responsible are never in a position to do this again.
OpenAI slammed Musk’s lawsuit, calling it a “harassment campaign driven by ego, jealousy, and a desire to slow down a competitor.”