Elon Musk vows to donate OpenAI lawsuit proceeds to charity

The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, has pledged to donate any proceeds from his ongoing lawsuit against OpenAI to charity, stressing that he has no intention of personal financial gain.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Musk wrote, “The proceeds of any legal victory in the OpenAI case will be donated to charity. I will in no way enrich myself.”

The lawsuit, which is set to begin on April 28 in Oakland, centers on allegations that Sam Altman and others steered OpenAI away from its original non-profit mission.

Musk, who co-founded the organisation and contributed an estimated $38–45 million in its early years, claims the shift violated the terms under which he agreed to fund it.

He is seeking damages of up to $134 billion from OpenAI and Microsoft, accusing both of benefiting unfairly from his early support. Microsoft, a major investor since 2019, is named as a co-defendant.

Musk has also previously spoken about the challenges of effective philanthropy. In a December podcast with investor Nikhil Kamath, he noted that while it is easy to appear generous, ensuring donations create meaningful impact is far more difficult.

Separately, Musk revealed in January 2025 that he donated 268,000 shares of Tesla to undisclosed charities as part of year-end tax planning.

In a recent pretrial development, a judge ruled that OpenAI’s legal team cannot question Musk about alleged ketamine use during the trial, though limited questions about his attendance at Burning Man will be allowed.

The high-stakes case has drawn significant attention, with commentators warning it could impact OpenAI’s valuation.

The company is reportedly seeking a funding round of up to $100 billion, which could push its valuation to around $830 billion as it eyes a potential public listing.