Did Elon wanted majority of OpenAI? Altman's testimony reveals new details

Sam Altman testified Tuesday that Elon Musk was obsessed with controlling OpenAI, initially demanding 90% equity and repeatedly insisting on majority control before walking away and declaring the company would fail without him.

"An early number that Mr Musk threw out was that he should have 90% of the equity to start," Altman told the jury in Oakland, California. "It then softened, but it always was a majority."

When Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman refused to cede control, Musk departed entirely. "The thing that burnt into my memory is when he told us we had a 0%, not 1%, chance of success," Altman said.

Musk has filed the suit to compel OpenAI to become non-profit again, saying Altman and Brockman abused his $38 million founding contribution to establish an $850 billion for-profit organisation. Altman denied any such accusations completely, saying, "I do not think that 'stealing a charity' to look at what has actually happened here."

In 2017, the concept behind the creation of OpenAI was that no individual should have full control over artificial general intelligence which surpasses human abilities.

"The fact that Mr. Musk was unwilling to commit in writing to something contractual where he would not have long-term control made me very uncomfortable," Altman testified. When Altman and Brockman rejected his demands, Musk walked away, signaling the end of his involvement with the company he had cofounded.

Musk's lawyers attacked Altman aggressively, questioning his truthfulness and integrity. Attorney Steven Molo sparred with Altman, asking bluntly: "Are you completely trustworthy? Do you always tell the truth?"

Altman's tense reply "I believe I'm a truthful person" drew immediate pushback. "It wasn't my question, sir," Molo snapped.

The credibility attack mentioned the November 2023 ousting of Altman, where the board at OpenAI fired him because of a lack of transparency. However, Altman was allowed to return to work five days later because of the staff’s rebellion against his ousting. On Tuesday, the attorneys general from ten different American states asked Altman to disclose conflicts of interest before OpenAI goes public.