Sam Altman will testify on Tuesday and Wednesday in the Oakland federal courthouse, marking the most consequential moment of a trial that has already reshaped the public understanding of how OpenAI was founded, fractured and rebuilt into the most valuable private technology company in the world.
Altman's two days on the stand arrive after three weeks of testimony that have produced a remarkably detailed, and remarkably unflattering, portrait of the organisation he leads.
The question is no longer whether OpenAI was chaotically governed; the trial record has established that beyond dispute. The question is whether the chaos was the product of a young nonprofit struggling with unprecedented success, or the deliberate work of executives who enriched themselves at the expense of a charitable mission funded by Elon Musk's $38 million.
The evidence presented so far has given ammunition to both sides, but the final days of witness testimony before Altman's appearance tilted the narrative towards Musk's case in ways that Altman will need to address directly.
Ilya Sutskever, OpenAI's former chief scientist and co-founder, testified on Monday that he spent approximately a year gathering evidence of what he described as a "consistent pattern of lying" by Altman before orchestrating his removal in November 2023.
Sutskever called the firing a "Hail Mary" to save OpenAI, which he said had become an environment "not conducive" to the safe development of artificial intelligence. "I felt like I created this company. I simply cared for it, and I didn't want it to be destroyed," he told the jury.
Sutskever's testimony is significant because he is the most technically credible figure in the case. He co-founded OpenAI, led the research that produced the breakthroughs underlying ChatGPT, and left the company in 2024 to found Safe Superintelligence Inc. He has no financial interest in the outcome of the trial. When he tells a jury he spent a year documenting Altman's dishonesty, that carries weight.
The week also brought a new front. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee sent Altman a letter on Friday demanding information about conflicts of interest, specifically citing Greg Brockman's stakes in two startups that Altman backs and a percentage holding in Altman's family fund.
Committee Chair James Comer also flagged OpenAI's proposed investment in Helion, the nuclear fusion company in which Altman holds a personal stake, warning that the arrangement raises concerns about "the use of OpenAI to potentially bolster the value of other companies and startups in which you hold a financial stake."
The congressional inquiry adds political pressure at the worst possible moment. Altman will take the stand knowing that his testimony is being watched not only by the nine-person jury but by legislators who are already sceptical of his governance and who have the power to complicate OpenAI's planned conversion to a for-profit public benefit corporation and its potential initial public offering.
Musk's legal team will focus on three lines of attack. The first is the founding promise: that Altman solicited Musk's money for a nonprofit and then converted the company into a for-profit vehicle that has made Altman and his associates enormously wealthy.
The second is the pattern of candour: Sutskever's testimony about a year of documented dishonesty, Murati's admission that she did not trust Altman, and Brockman's journal entries describing contemplated actions he called "morally bankrupt."
The third is the financial entanglements: the Helion investment, the Brockman holdings, and the broader question of whether OpenAI's leadership used the company's position to benefit their personal portfolios.
Altman's defence will rest on context. OpenAI's lawyers have argued throughout the trial that Musk was aware of the for-profit plans, was offered equity, and left only when he could not secure majority control.
They will point to Musk's own testimony, in which he demanded that OpenAI be folded into Tesla and that he be given control of the for-profit entity, as evidence that his complaint is not about a charitable mission but about losing a power struggle.
Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will ultimately decide the case, though the jury's advisory verdict will carry significant weight. If the court finds OpenAI liable, the remedies Musk has sought include Altman's removal from the board, the removal of both Altman and Brockman as officers, the cancellation of Microsoft's licensing agreement, and damages that Musk has pegged at up to $134 billion.
The trial is expected to conclude by the end of May. Whatever Altman says on the stand this week will not only shape the jury's verdict but also define how the founding of OpenAI is understood for years to come.
The recap
- Sam Altman will testify in Musk's lawsuit in Oakland.
- Musk alleges $38 million meant for nonprofit OpenAI was misused.
- Altman is scheduled to appear on Tuesday and Wednesday.