
Musk’s “World War III” threat in Twitter lawsuit haunts him at OpenAI trial
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Elon Musk's 7 biggest stumbles on the stand at OpenAI trial
“I don’t yell” Elon Musk spent three days testifying as the first witness in his trial against OpenAI. Elon Musk seems tired and cranky. On Thursday, he took the stand for the third day in a four-week trial stemming from his lawsuit alleging that OpenAI abandoned its mission and should be blocked from taking the company public later this year. If Musk plays his cards right, Sam Altman could be ousted and OpenAI would remain a nonprofit forever. But Musk stumbled at least seven times in ways that possibly put his chances at winning in jeopardy. Most notable, 1) OpenAI’s lawyer managed to get him to make several concessions over his own lawyer’s objections. 2) He also lost a fight to keep xAI’s safety record off the table, calling his reputation as a supposed AI savior defending OpenAI’s mission into question. 3) He repeatedly appeared dishonest, as OpenAI’s lawyer showed documents contradicting his testimony. And he twice appeared disingenuous, 4) first when confronted with calling OpenAI’s safety team “jackasses,” 5) and then again when admitting that he didn’t know what “safety cards” are, even though his own AI firm issues them. Perhaps most embarrassing, 6) he testified that he never
Elon Musk sent ominous texts to Greg Brockman, Sam Altman after asking for a settlement, OpenAI claims
In Brief Posted: 9:36 AM PDT · May 4, 2026 Image Credits:Marc Piasecki / Getty Images Two days before the Elon Musk vs. OpenAI trial began last week, Musk texted the model maker’s president and co-founder Greg Brockman. Musk suggested to Brockman that OpenAI settle the suit. After Brockman replied by suggesting both sides drop their suits, the exchange went off the rails, with Musk responding: “By the end of this week, you and Sam will be the most hated men in America. If you insist, so it will be.” So says a new filing submitted on Sunday by OpenAI’s lawyers. The filing didn’t include copies of the text exchange, and most of it was dedicated to convincing the judge why this exchange on settlement talks should be admitted into evidence. The judge, however, was not having it — ruling the exchange inadmissible, per TechCrunch reporter Tim Fernholz, who is on site covering the trial. The implication, however, is clear. Musk’s lawsuit seeks to unwind OpenAI’s for-profit structure, require its tech be made available to the public, strip Microsoft’s licensing agreement, and compel OpenAI to pay him general, compensatory, and punitive damages plus his lawyer’s fees. After OpenAI’s lawyers publicly
Musk’s “World War III” threat in Twitter lawsuit haunts him at OpenAI trial
Just days before the trial started, Elon Musk tried to settle his lawsuit, which alleges that under Sam Altman’s direction, OpenAI abandoned its mission to serve as a nonprofit making AI to benefit humanity. According to a Sunday court filing from OpenAI, Musk messaged OpenAI President Greg Brockman two days ahead of the trial to “gauge interest” in a possible settlement. Brockman promptly responded, suggesting that “both sides” drop their claims. But Musk refused, then appeared to grow threatening enough that the court may allow Brockman to testify on the message as evidence supposedly revealing Musk’s true motives for pursuing the litigation. “By the end of this week, you and Sam will be the most hated men in America,” Musk responded to Brockman’s suggestion that all claims be dropped. “If you insist, so it will be.” OpenAI clearly did not accept the settlement terms, as the trial started last week with Musk as the first witness. On the stand, Musk stumbled several times, perhaps weakening his case by making concessions, growing hot-tempered, backing off claims that AI risks may quickly become existential, and admitting his ignorance when it comes to AI safety at his own company, xAI. If admitted, his
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