Microsoft: “We Weren’t Even Involved”
Microsoft, added to the suit later in 2023, argued in its own motion that it played no role in any of the alleged agreements Musk claims were breached.
“At best,” Microsoft said, the lawsuit suggests it should have known about discussions it wasn’t involved in. That lack of direct knowledge, the tech giant said, is fatal to Musk’s claims.
The Dispute’s Origin and Legal Backdrop
The high-stakes battle began in March 2024 in California state court, with Musk accusing OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Microsoft, and others of “setting the founding agreement aflame” by shifting OpenAI’s business model to favor profit. He likened the alleged betrayal to raising funds to save the Amazon rainforest only to start a for-profit logging operation.
At the time, Musk claimed he had been misled as an early funder of OpenAI and had believed the company would remain public-serving.
After dropping the original state court case just before a dismissal hearing, Musk refiled in federal court weeks later. OpenAI immediately moved for dismissal, accusing Musk of using the courts as a competitive tactic amid the rise of his own AI venture, xAI, a direct competitor to ChatGPT.
