Elon Musk seeks $134 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft

Elon Musk is seeking between $79 billion and $134 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, according to new legal filings. The lawsuit alleges the two companies generated "unjust enrichment" after OpenAI reportedly abandoned its original non-profit mission.

Musk claims he is entitled to a share of OpenAI’s value because he provided $38 million in initial capital. That investment accounted for approximately 60% of the startup’s total founding capital.

The filings also highlight Musk’s non-financial contributions, including his efforts in recruiting key personnel and providing essential business connections.

C. Paul Wazzan, a financial economist, provided the damage estimates for the case. Wazzan calculated that OpenAI gained between $65.5 billion and $109.43 billion in "unjust enrichment," while Microsoft’s portion was estimated between $13.3 billion and $25.06 billion.

The legal battle began in March 2024. It represents a significant escalation in the dispute between Musk and the company he helped co-found.

Musk is also pursuing separate legal action against OpenAI and Apple. That lawsuit alleges monopolistic practices on the App Store that harm his own artificial intelligence firm, xAI.

Elon Musk’s latest legal offensive against OpenAI represents far more than a high-stakes financial dispute; it is a fundamental clash over the governing philosophy of artificial intelligence. At the heart of the litigation is a stark ideological divide: the original vision of OpenAI as a non-profit entity dedicated to the broad benefit of humanity versus its current reality as a commercialized, "capped-profit" enterprise increasingly tethered to Microsoft.

The demand for tens of billions of dollars in damages is a calculated strike against what Musk characterizes as "unjust enrichment." The claim rests on the argument that OpenAI and Microsoft effectively hijacked technology developed under a non-profit mandate for private gain. Should the court side with Musk, the ramifications would be seismic for the AI sector. Such a ruling could compel a radical restructuring of OpenAI’s corporate architecture or result in crippling financial penalties that would jeopardize its market-dominant position and its strategic alliance with Microsoft.

However, Musk’s motives must be viewed through a competitive lens. As the founder of xAI, Musk is a direct market rival to the very entity he is suing. Consequently, this litigation serves a dual purpose: it is both a philosophical crusade and a tactical maneuver designed to erode the standing of his primary competitor. When framed alongside his broader antitrust challenges against the Apple ecosystem, a clear pattern of aggressive litigation as a tool for market realignment emerges.

Ultimately, the resolution of this case will establish a critical legal precedent for the future of AI research. It will define the boundaries between a scientific mission and commercial profit, determining how the next generation of intellectual property is governed in an increasingly consolidated tech landscape.

While this high-profile tech lawsuit has no direct impact on the small businesses that anchor the Vietnamese-American community—from the phở restaurants and nail salons of Little Saigon to those navigating remittances or visa categories like F2B and H-1B—it serves as a clear reflection of the fierce competition behind the AI tools that are becoming ubiquitous in our daily lives.