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Elon Musk has lost his lawsuit against Sam Altman and OpenAI (techcrunch.com)

1097 points by nycdatasci · 56 days ago · 595 comments on HN

Article summary

Elon Musk has lost his lawsuit against Sam Altman and OpenAI, with the jury finding that his claims were filed too late due to the statute of limitations. Musk had accused Altman and OpenAI of 'stealing a charity' by creating a for-profit affiliate of the frontier AI lab. The trial focused on whether and when Altman and the other defendants had made and broken promises to Musk, but his case failed to convince jurors that he had a valid claim. The verdict means that one major threat to OpenAI, a possible restructuring, is now off the table ahead of its reported IPO.

Main themes

  • Elon Musk lawsuit
  • OpenAI and Sam Altman
  • Statute of limitations
  • Charity and for-profit affiliates
  • Tech industry disputes
  • Court verdicts and appeals

What commenters say

  • The lawsuit's failure was due to the statute of limitations defense, which is a strong legal defense that goes to whether the court is even allowed to proceed with the case.
  • The appeal is unlikely to succeed because appeals courts only evaluate matters of law, not of fact, and the jury's finding of fact is given significant deference.
  • Some argue that the appeal will be based on the grounds that the statute of limitations was paused for some reason, but these exceptions are very narrow and unlikely to apply.
  • Others believe that the appeal is merely a way for Musk's lawyers to continue billing hours and that the case is meritless.
  • There is a debate about whether Sam Altman is more cunning or devious than Elon Musk, with some arguing that being able to manipulate without being obvious is a more significant threat.
  • The case highlights the issue of vexatious litigation, where wealthy individuals can drag out lawsuits indefinitely, and some argue that this is a problem that needs to be addressed.
  • The verdict is seen as a victory for OpenAI and a blow to Musk's attempts to sabotage a competitor, with some arguing that the lawsuit was an attempt to disrupt OpenAI's reported IPO.
  • The discussion also touches on the broader theme of the behavior of tech industry leaders and the consequences of their actions, with some arguing that they are not held accountable for their actions.