Elon Musk files $134 billion lawsuit against OpenAI... "Non-profit label is a planned fraud"

Elon Musk’s lawsuit against ChatGPT developer OpenAI and Microsoft enters a new phase. Musk’s side estimates the damages claimed in the case to be as high as $134 billion (approximately 180 trillion Korean won), and strongly criticizes OpenAI for abandoning its original public welfare mission and transforming into a profit-driven enterprise, calling it a blatant “betrayal” and “fraud.”

On the 17th local time, according to the complaint and evidence submitted by Musk to the court, the case has gone beyond a simple breach of contract dispute, directly pointing to a “betrayal worth $134 billion” surrounding OpenAI’s identity and founding philosophy.

They openly discuss their conspiracy to commit fraud and steal charitable assets

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 16, 2026

◇ “38 million seed funds gave rise to a $500 billion value… Unjust gains must be returned”

The compensation estimate by Musk’s side ranges from at least $79 billion (approximately 106 trillion Korean won) to as high as $134 billion. This is not merely a recovery of investment but a calculation based on the concept of “benefit restitution.”

According to economist C. Paul Vazhan, hired by Musk’s side, the approximately $38 million early investment, talent acquisition, and strategic guidance are considered the core foundation that contributed to OpenAI’s current enterprise value of about $500 billion (approximately 670 trillion Korean won). Musk argues that OpenAI and Microsoft, after gaining public trust and support through the “nonprofit” label, abandoned it once scaled up, like discarding worn-out shoes, and reaped huge commercial benefits.

◇ Key evidence: Greg Brockman’s 2017 memorandum

The core dispute in this case revolves around Greg Brockman’s personal memorandum from 2017, co-founder of OpenAI. Musk’s side presents it as “conclusive evidence” proving that OpenAI’s management had long intended to abandon its nonprofit mission.

In the publicly available memo, Brockman wrote: “If we promise to be nonprofit but switch to a for-profit enterprise (B-corp) after three months, that means our original promise was a lie. I can’t believe that.”

Musk harshly criticized this on his social media platform X: “They openly discuss their conspiracy to commit fraud and steal charitable assets.” Musk’s legal team emphasized that the memo proves OpenAI leadership was aware of their breach of the nonprofit promise and was worried that major funder Musk might oppose it.

◇ OpenAI: “Musk is just venting because he couldn’t control things… purely taken out of context”

Meanwhile, OpenAI fully rebutted Musk’s claims. Through an official blog, OpenAI stated: “Musk took Brockman’s memo out of context and edited it maliciously.”

OpenAI explained: “In 2017, Musk also agreed that the funding needed to develop Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) far exceeded what a nonprofit could raise,” and “discussions about transitioning to a for-profit structure were transparent.” It also pointed out that the real reason Musk left OpenAI was not the transition itself but because his plan to merge OpenAI into Tesla or to have full control over it failed.

OpenAI characterized this lawsuit as “harassment by competitor Musk to smear OpenAI” and announced plans to respond legally.

This case is expected to become one of the largest legal disputes in Silicon Valley history. The court’s ruling will not only determine the ownership of hundreds of billions of dollars but may also establish an important legal precedent regarding the responsibilities of tech companies in balancing their “public welfare mission” during startup phases and subsequent “profit pursuits.”