Musk casts himself as AI's good guy in testimony vs. OpenAI

April 30, 2026

TL;DR

Elon Musk is the first witness in his lawsuit against OpenAI, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and Microsoft.
Musk argued in court that AI safety is best achieved when AI development is not driven by profit motives.
OpenAI's counsel, William Savitt, cross-examined Musk, suggesting his safety concerns became more prominent when he lacked control over OpenAI.
Savitt questioned Musk's portrayal as a "paladin of safety and regulation" and his claims about meeting with President Obama regarding AI safety.
The article notes that Musk's Grok chatbot has a history of posting racist messages and generating inappropriate images, though this has not yet been raised in the trial.
Musk acknowledged that his own AI company, xAI, is for-profit, but he was able to avoid further elaboration due to SpaceX's SEC quiet period.

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