OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Elon Musk's lawyers dealt with off with OpenAI in court Tuesday as a federal judge weighed the billionaire's demand for asteroidsathome.net a court order that would obstruct the ChatGPT maker from transforming itself to a for-profit business.
U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said it was a "stretch" for Musk to claim he will be irreparably harmed if she doesn't step in to stop OpenAI from moving on with its shift from a nonprofit research lab to a for-profit corporation.
But the judge likewise raised concerns about OpenAI and its relationship with organization partner Microsoft and said she would not stop the case from transferring to trial as soon as next year so a jury can choose.
"It is possible that what Mr. Musk is saying is true. We ´ ll find out. He ´ ll rest on the stand," she said.
Musk, an early OpenAI financier and board member, took legal action against the expert system company in 2015, first in a California state court and later in federal court, declaring it had betrayed its starting aims as a not-for-profit research lab benefiting the general public good. Musk had actually invested about $45 million in the startup from its founding until 2018, his lawyer said Tuesday.
Musk intensified the legal disagreement late in 2015, adding brand-new claims and offenders and requesting a court order that would stop OpenAI ´ s plans to transform itself into a for-profit business more completely. Musk also added his own AI business, xAI, as a plaintiff.
Also targeted by Musk's claim is OpenAI's close business partner Microsoft and tech business owner Reid Hoffman, a former OpenAI board member who also rests on Microsoft's board.
Gonzalez Rogers said she has a high bar for approving the type of preliminary injunction that Musk wants but hasn't yet ruled on the . She did state she had "considerable issues" with 2 individuals connected to Microsoft on OpenAI's board - Hoffman and setiathome.berkeley.edu long time Microsoft executive Deanna Templeton, who was a "non-voting observer."
"So you desire me to think that she was sitting there listening to all the discussions and not telling anyone? What would the point be for her to sit there and listen to everybody, if not to communicate what she was listening? There would be no point for her to be there, which is why she really should not exist," she said.
Hoffman, a co-founder of LinkedIn, has been on Microsoft ´ s board given that shortly after the tech huge bought the job networking website. He stepped down from OpenAI's board in 2023 to prevent disputes with his AI start-up, Inflection.
Templeton, who Musk also called as an accused, was added as a non-voting member of OpenAI ´ s board in the after-effects of Altman ´ s ouster after Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella looked for more stability on the board. But months later on, she was dropped from the OpenAI board as U.S. antitrust enforcers were expressing concerns about such arrangements on corporate boards.
The judge has managed a number of tech market cases including Apple's battle with Epic Games, though she said Tuesday that Musk's case is "nothing like" that a person. That case was likewise the last time she gave a preliminary injunction, in 2020, 8 months before the case went to trial.
Then-President Barack Obama appointed Gonzalez Rogers to the federal bench in 2011.
Tuesday's hearing was originally set for January but was delayed after Musk's lawyer Marc Toberoff said his house was damaged in the Pacific Palisades wildfire.
Musk, who did not participate in the hearing, has actually alleged in the claim that the companies are breaking the terms of his foundational contributions to the charity. Judge Gonzalez Rogers called it a "stretch" to claim "irreversible harm" to Musk, pediascape.science and called the case "billionaires vs. billionaires." She questioned why Musk invested 10s of millions in OpenAI without a composed agreement. Toberoff said it was since the relationship in between Altman and Musk at the time was "built on trust" and the two were extremely close.
"That is simply a great deal of money" to invest "on a handshake," the judge said.
OpenAI has said Musk ´ s requested court order would "disable OpenAI ´ s organization"and mission to the benefit of Musk and his own AI company and is based on "far-fetched" legal claims.
At the heart of the dispute is a 2017 internal power struggle at the new start-up that caused Altman becoming OpenAI ´ s CEO
. Emails revealed by OpenAI reveal Musk had actually also sought to be CEO and grew frustrated after two other OpenAI co-founders said he would hold too much power as a significant shareholder and president if the start-up succeeded in its objective to attain better-than-human AI referred to as synthetic general intelligence, or AGI. Musk has actually long voiced concerns about how advanced types of AI could threaten humanity.
Altman eventually prospered in becoming CEO and photorum.eclat-mauve.fr has remained so except for a duration in 2023 when he was fired and after that reinstated days later on after the board that ousted him was changed.
OpenAI has actually sought to show Musk ´ s early support for the idea of making OpenAI a for-profit organization so it could raise cash for the hardware and computer system power that AI needs.
Musk is not the only one tough OpenAI's for-profit shift. Facebook and Instagram moms and dad Meta Platforms has asked California's attorney general of the United States to block it, and the workplace of Delaware's chief law officer has said it is reviewing the conversion.
It was unclear Tuesday when the case might go to trial. Musk's lawyers at first said they would be prepared by June after some back-and-forth with the 2 sides the judge indicated it probably will not be up until June 2026 at the earliest, but likely early 2027.
O'Brien reported from Providence, Rhode Island.
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