Musk vs. Altman: Burning Man, a ‘diary,’ and a trial almost no one thinks Musk can win

The most expensive frenemy fallout in tech history began Monday, in a federal courtroom in Oakland.

After over a decade of partnership, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is suing OpenAI CEO Sam Altman for more than $130 billion, alleging that Altman and OpenAI cofounder Greg Brockman swindled him and betrayed the company’s founding charitable mission. The chief complaint centers on Altman’s 2023 move to spin OpenAI’s core technology into a for-profit subsidiary, now valued at almost $1 trillion and which could go public as soon as late 2026.

Musk, who donated about $38 million of OpenAI’s earliest funding, wants the judge to unwind the for-profit conversion, force Altman and Brockman out of their roles, and direct any damages to OpenAI’s nonprofit arm rather than to himself. He does not want any damages paid to him; rather, it appears his primary aim is to knock “Scam Altman”—his new nickname for his old friend—down. 

To counter, it appears that an equally hurt Altman will bring up all the dirt he has on Musk, including a Burning Man trip and a former OpenAI board member who is also the mother of four...