Sam Altman, OpenAI Inc. Chief Executive Officer, on Tuesday, September 23, 2025.
Kyle Grillot | Bloomberg | Getty Images
OpenAI sent a letter to investors and bank partners on Thursday warning them to wait Elon Musk making “deliberately outlandish, attention-grabbing claims” like his claim A court hearing against the AI laboratory will be held in April.
The test represents a public escalation of Musk’s years-long feud with OpenAI, and the company’s letter serves as an attempt to avoid and ease investor concerns. OpenAI has raised billions of dollars from venture capitalists and its valuation has grown to $500 billion.
Musk founded OpenAI as a nonprofit research company in 2015, along with several other researchers and executives, including the startup’s CEO. Sam Altman.
He filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in 2024, alleging he was “grossly manipulated” and “deceived” after the AI company explored becoming a for-profit entity and created an “opaque network of commercial OpenAI affiliates.” Microsoft.
Musk resigned from OpenAI’s board in 2018, but said he was owed “the value of all developed intellectual property” for his contributions, which totaled billions of dollars, according to the complaint.
“We have a strong defense and are confident we can win the case,” OpenAI said in the letter, seen by CNBC. “Based on current records, we believe the value of this case will not exceed the $38 million awarded by Elon, but this is not a guarantee.”
OpenAI declined to comment on the letter.
Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that the case would go to trial. The lawsuit was filed in August 2024 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
OpenAI said it expects Musk to make comments about the AI company that are “not based on reality” and “typical of the harassment tactics he has used in the past.”
“Elon’s lawsuit remains frivolous and without merit, and our team is focused on ensuring that a jury sees these claims for what they are,” OpenAI said.
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