Sam Altman stepped into the witness box today in the federal lawsuit Elon Musk filed against OpenAI and its leadership. The trial, being heard at the US District Court in Oakland, California, centers on Musk's claim that OpenAI abandoned the nonprofit founding mission he helped establish — a mission he argues was fatally compromised when the organization accepted a $10 billion investment from Microsoft and began its transition toward a for-profit structure.
Altman is scheduled to testify across two days — May 12 and 13 — making today's session the first of his appearance on the stand. The case has broadened beyond the original nonprofit mission argument to include scrutiny of Altman's conduct and honesty in his role leading the company. Presiding over the proceedings is US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers.
In an unusual move for federal civil litigation, Judge Gonzalez Rogers authorized a public audio livestream of the trial, made possible by a May 1, 2026, amendment to the Northern District of California's Civil Local Rule 77-3, which gives judges discretion to open remote audio access to the public. The stream is broadcast on the official US District Court Northern District of California YouTube channel, runs Monday through Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time, and is expected to continue through approximately May 21. Recording or rebroadcasting the audio is prohibited.
For those tracking the broader AI industry, the outcome carries real weight. The lawsuit's core question — whether a nonprofit AI lab can pivot to a for-profit model without violating its founding obligations — has implications well beyond Musk and Altman personally. Altman's two days of testimony are likely to be the most closely watched portion of the trial.
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- @wholemars on X (2026-05-12T18:20:13.000Z) — Direct source
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