Musk Texted OpenAI President About Settlement Days Before Trial

Elon Musk reached out to OpenAI President Greg Brockman to explore a settlement just two days before their high-stakes lawsuit went to trial, CNBC reported Monday. The outreach, revealed in a late-Sunday court filing, quickly soured into a threat.

A Text That Became a Warning

When Brockman suggested both parties withdraw their respective claims, Musk’s response turned sharply combative. According to the filing, Musk warned Brockman that he and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman would become “the most hated men in America” by week’s end. OpenAI’s legal team moved to enter the text message into evidence. Lawyers argued the communication reveals Musk’s true motivation in pursuing the case. Their filing stated the message shows Musk is driven by a desire to damage a commercial competitor and its leadership, rather than genuine legal grievance.

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Musk Testimony Dominated the Opening Week

The Musk OpenAI trial began proceedings in federal court in Oakland, California, late last month. Musk spent three days on the witness stand during the first week. He described Altman and Brockman as having effectively stolen a charitable organization. He also fielded questions about xAI, his rival artificial intelligence company, which he launched after leaving OpenAI’s board in 2018. Earlier this year, xAI merged with SpaceX in a transaction that placed xAI’s value at roughly $250 billion. Brockman is expected to take the stand as early as Monday, with OpenAI’s lawyers signaling they plan to surface the text during his testimony.

How the OpenAI Dispute Began

Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015 alongside Altman and others, with the organization structured as a nonprofit focused on safe AI development. He contributed an estimated $38 million before departing the board in 2018. OpenAI formed a for-profit subsidiary that same year. The commercial side of the business surged after ChatGPT launched in late 2022. Private investors now value OpenAI above $850 billion. Musk argues his early donations were used for commercial purposes he never authorized. He has described OpenAI’s for-profit arm as having overtaken its original mission entirely. OpenAI has called his legal claims baseless. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers is presiding over the case, with proceedings resuming Monday morning in Oakland.

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