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OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Elon Musk's lawyers took on with OpenAI in court Tuesday as a federal judge weighed the billionaire's demand for a court order that would obstruct the ChatGPT maker from converting itself to a for-profit company.

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said it was a "stretch" for Musk to claim he will be irreparably damaged if she does not step in to stop OpenAI from progressing with its shift from a not-for-profit lab to a for-profit corporation.

But the judge likewise raised concerns about OpenAI and its relationship with service partner Microsoft and said she wouldn't stop the case from moving to trial as quickly as next year so a jury can choose.

"It is possible that what Mr. Musk is saying holds true. We ´ ll find out. He ´ ll sit on the stand," she said.

Musk, an early OpenAI investor and board member, took legal action against the expert system business in 2015, first in a California state court and later on in federal court, declaring it had betrayed its starting aims as a nonprofit research study lab benefiting the general public good. Musk had invested about $45 million in the startup from its founding up until 2018, his attorney said Tuesday.

Musk intensified the legal conflict late last year, adding new claims and accuseds and requesting for a court order that would stop OpenAI ´ s prepares to convert itself into a for-profit service more totally. Musk likewise included his own AI business, xAI, as a plaintiff.

Also targeted by Musk's claim is OpenAI's close organization partner Microsoft and tech entrepreneur Reid Hoffman, a previous OpenAI board member who also sits on Microsoft's board.

Gonzalez Rogers said she has a high bar for approving the kind of initial injunction that Musk desires however hasn't yet ruled on the demand. She did state she had "considerable issues" with two people connected to Microsoft on OpenAI's board - Hoffman and long time Microsoft executive Deanna Templeton, who was a "non-voting observer."

"So you want me to believe that she was sitting there listening to all the discussions and not informing any person? What would the point be for her to sit there and listen to everybody, if not to communicate what she was listening? There would be no point for her to be there, which is why she in fact needs to not exist," she said.

Hoffman, a co-founder of LinkedIn, has been on Microsoft ´ s board because soon after the tech giant purchased the task networking site. He stepped down from OpenAI's board in 2023 to avoid disputes with his AI start-up, Inflection.

Templeton, who Musk likewise named as an offender, was added as a non-voting member of OpenAI ´ s board in the after-effects of Altman ´ s ouster after Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella looked for more stability on the board. But months later, she was dropped from the OpenAI board as U.S. antitrust enforcers were revealing issues about such plans on business boards.

The judge has actually dealt with a variety of tech market cases consisting of Apple's fight with Epic Games, though she said Tuesday that Musk's case is "nothing like" that a person. That case was also the last time she approved an initial injunction, in 2020, 8 months before the case went to trial.

Then-President Barack Obama selected Gonzalez Rogers to the federal bench in 2011.

Tuesday's hearing was initially set for January however was delayed after Musk's attorney Marc Toberoff said his house was damaged in the Pacific Palisades wildfire.

Musk, who did not participate in the hearing, has actually declared in the claim that the companies are the terms of his fundamental contributions to the charity. Judge Gonzalez Rogers called it a "stretch" to claim "irreparable harm" to Musk, and called the case "billionaires vs. billionaires." She questioned why Musk invested 10s of millions in OpenAI without a composed agreement. Toberoff said it was since the relationship between Altman and Musk at the time was "built on trust" and the 2 were very close.

"That is just a lot of cash" to invest "on a handshake," the judge said.

OpenAI has said Musk ´ s asked for court order would "disable OpenAI ´ s organization"and mission to the advantage of Musk and his own AI business and is based on "far-fetched" legal claims.

At the heart of the disagreement is a 2017 internal power struggle at the new startup that caused Altman ending up being OpenAI ´ s CEO

. Emails revealed by OpenAI show Musk had actually likewise sought to be CEO and grew frustrated after two other OpenAI co-founders said he would hold too much power as a significant shareholder and president if the start-up prospered in its goal to attain better-than-human AI called artificial basic intelligence, or bytes-the-dust.com AGI. Musk has actually long voiced concerns about how sophisticated types of AI might threaten humanity.

Altman eventually prospered in becoming CEO and has actually remained so except for a period in 2023 when he was fired and then reinstated days later on after the board that ousted him was replaced.

OpenAI has actually sought to demonstrate Musk ´ s early support for the concept of making OpenAI a for-profit organization so it could raise cash for the hardware and computer system power that AI needs.

Musk is not the only one tough OpenAI's for-profit transition. Facebook and Instagram moms and dad Meta Platforms has asked California's attorney general of the United States to obstruct it, and the office of Delaware's chief law officer has said it is examining the conversion.

It was not clear Tuesday when the case may go to trial. Musk's legal representatives at first said they would be ready by June after some back-and-forth with the 2 sides the judge indicated it probably will not be till June 2026 at the earliest, however likely early 2027.

O'Brien reported from Providence, Rhode Island.

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