OpenAI Co-Founder Describes Tense 2017 Confrontation With Musk at Trial

BBC Business reported Wednesday that OpenAI president Greg Brockman testified he feared Elon Musk would physically strike him during a volatile 2017 meeting. The exchange centered on Musk’s push to take greater control of the artificial intelligence company he had helped found.

Brockman Describes the Moment Control Was Contested

Brockman, giving evidence at an Oakland federal court, recalled the precise moment he refused Musk’s demand for expanded authority over OpenAI. According to BBC Business, Musk’s demeanor shifted sharply once that refusal was made. Brockman told the jury he genuinely believed the confrontation might turn physical. Musk then announced he would cut off funding he had been providing since OpenAI’s 2015 launch.

The OpenAI trial pits Musk against chief executive Sam Altman in a dispute over the company’s shift from a nonprofit structure to a for-profit one. Musk argues the transition betrayed OpenAI’s founding mission. OpenAI contends Musk was fully aware of plans to commercialize the operation.

Background: A Founding Relationship That Soured

Musk was among OpenAI’s original co-founders but departed before the company rose to global prominence. The launch of ChatGPT transformed OpenAI into one of the most valuable technology enterprises in the world. Musk subsequently founded his own AI venture, xAI, which develops a competing chatbot.

Brockman also described earlier attempts by Musk to win over other co-founders before the 2017 showdown. Text messages presented to the jury suggested Musk explored offering a Tesla Model 3 to co-founder Ilya Sutskever in exchange for accepting less favorable governance terms. The messages framed the gesture explicitly as leverage.

Zilis Testimony Expected as Trial Continues

Attention now shifts to former OpenAI board member Shivon Zilis, who is expected to follow Brockman on the stand. Zilis is the mother of four of Musk’s children. Brockman testified he learned of their twins through media coverage rather than any direct disclosure. When he later raised the matter with Zilis, she described the arrangement as entirely platonic and medically assisted. Zilis departed the OpenAI board in March 2023, the same month Musk launched xAI. Brockman said the board had trusted her to manage any conflict of interest arising from her ties to Musk.

The trial, expected to run for roughly a month, will continue probing the decisions that reshaped one of Silicon Valley’s most consequential companies.

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