OpenAI CEO Sam Altman took the stand yesterday in the third week of the blockbuster trial brought by Elon Musk, telling jurors that Musk wanted to “take a chainsaw through” the company’s research staff during his time on the board.

Altman said Musk pushed co-founders Greg Brockman and Ilya Sutskever to rank researchers by accomplishment so the bottom could be cut. The exercise did “huge damage for a long time to the culture of the organization,” Altman testified.

A Morale Boost When Musk Left

Altman said Musk’s 2018 departure from the OpenAI board was “a morale boost in some ways” because researchers thought, “we’re not going to have to work this way any more.”

He also detailed what he called a “particularly hair-raising moment” when co-founders asked Musk what would happen if he died while in control. Musk allegedly replied: “I hadn’t thought about it tons but maybe control would pass to my children.”

Musk wanted 90% of OpenAI’s equity in early for-profit discussions because he was “the most well-known” of the founders, Altman testified. Musk also told the group, “If I make one tweet about this, it’s instantly worth a ton.”

What Musk Wants From The Trial

Musk donated $38 million to OpenAI between 2015 and 2020, roughly 28% of total donations during that period. He is now seeking up to $180 billion in damages and wants Altman removed as CEO.

Polymarket traders give Musk a 31% chance of winning his case, and price the odds of Altman being out as OpenAI CEO by the end of 2026 at 20%.

Musk’s attorney pressed Altman on personal investments worth over $2 billion in companies that do business with OpenAI, including stakes in nuclear startup Helion, chipmaker Cerebras and Reddit Inc. (NYSE:RDDT).

Cerebras is due to IPO tonight, with OpenAI set to receive warrants worth up to 10% of the chipmaker as part of a compute deal.

The House Oversight Committee sent Altman a letter on May 8 requesting documents on how OpenAI handles conflicts of interest, citing concerns charitable funds could be used to inflate the value of his personal holdings.

OpenAI co-defendant Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) was an early investor in the AI lab and is entitled to a share of its profits. A ruling against OpenAI may also derail the company’s planned IPO.

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