Ilya Sutskever claims he gathered evidence against Sam Altman, alleging dishonesty that could impact OpenAI's leadership amid a lawsuit with Elon Musk.
Ilya Sutskever, co-founder of OpenAI, has revealed that he spent nearly a year collecting evidence of alleged dishonesty by CEO Sam Altman. This information was disclosed during the ongoing lawsuit between OpenAI and Elon Musk, as reported by Reuters.
Sutskever indicated that he had contemplated actions to remove Altman from his position as CEO long before the board's decision in November 2023, citing Altman's "consistent tendency to lie." He prepared a 52-page document for the board that detailed instances of Altman's behavior, which he described as undermining authority and creating discord among executives.
In discussions with Mira Murati, who was the Chief Technology Officer at the time, Sutskever expressed concerns about Altman's leadership effectiveness, stating, "His behavior did not contribute to achieving any great goal, including the creation of safe general artificial intelligence." This testimony is part of a trial that could influence the future of OpenAI and its flagship product, ChatGPT.
Elon Musk is seeking $150 billion in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, arguing that the shift from a nonprofit to a commercial model was detrimental and set a troubling precedent. He is also demanding the removal of both Altman and OpenAI President Greg Brockman.
The trial's closing arguments are set for May 14.
Potential Merger Discussions
Sutskever also mentioned that following Altman's brief dismissal, the remaining board members engaged with representatives from Anthropic, a competing AI company, to explore a potential merger.
Stock Sales Update
In a recent development, OpenAI permitted current and former employees to sell shares totaling up to $30 million. This transaction allowed over 600 individuals to collectively cash out $6.6 billion, with about 75 employees opting to sell the maximum amount. This move was an increase from the previous $10 million cap per employee, which had caused dissatisfaction within the company. The policy requiring employees to hold shares for two years before selling had limited liquidity for many who joined after the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022. Additionally, OpenAI faced scrutiny for not meeting key performance metrics for ChatGPT users and revenue in 2025, raising investor concerns.
