Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has taken his stance at the OpenAI vs Elon Musk trial. During his testimony, he publicly defended OpenAI’s move to a for-profit structure while also claiming that Elon Musk never directly raised concerns about Microsoft’s massive investment in the company.
During testimony in a federal court in Oakland, California, Nadella reportedly stated that OpenAI would have struggled to pursue its larger AI ambitions without a commercial structure capable of attracting large-scale funding. He also mentioned that Microsoft always viewed its partnership with OpenAI as commercial from the very start and not as a charitable donation.
This testimony comes as Musk continues his lawsuit against OpenAI, Sam Altman and Microsoft, accusing the company of abandoning its original non-profit mission in favour of profit-driven growth. Musk has argued that Microsoft’s multibillion-dollar backing played a major role in transforming OpenAI into a commercially dominant AI company.
However, Nadella told the court that Musk never personally contacted him to object to the company’s investments or raise concerns about any violations linked to OpenAI’s structure. He also defended Microsoft’s decision to back OpenAI early, saying the company took a major risk at a time when few others believed in the startup.“Without a for-profit entity, it would be hard for OpenAI to pursue its mission,” Nadella said.
He also stated that he was very proud that Microsoft took the risk to invest in OpenAI when no one was willing to. Although the company and Nadealla were skeptical about pumping capital into OpenAI.
Court discussions also returned to the chaotic removal of Sam Altman in 2023. Nadella described the situation as confusing, claiming that Microsoft never received a clear explanation from OpenAI’s board regarding Altman’s dismissal. According to reports, Nadella believed the board’s reasoning lacked sufficient detail, despite Microsoft’s close connection to OpenAI’s future.
Internal communications obtained during the trial reportedly revealed Microsoft’s growing concern about becoming overly reliant on OpenAI’s technology. In one exchange, Nadella compared the situation to IBM’s previous relationship with Microsoft, implying that he wanted Microsoft to avoid losing long-term strategic control over AI.
The hearing also featured testimony from OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever, who admitted that the process surrounding Altman’s removal was rushed and handled poorly.