Satya Nadella to testify in Elon Musk vs. OpenAI trial

Watch on YouTube ↗  |  May 11, 2026 at 14:48  |  4:27  |  CNBC

Summary

CNBC's Kate Rooney reports on the third week of the Elon Musk vs. OpenAI trial, focusing on Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella's scheduled testimony and the legal arguments surrounding Microsoft's role as a codefendant. The report covers key witnesses, including Sam Altman and Ilya Sutskever, and the defense that OpenAI's for-profit transition was driven by compute costs rather than personal enrichment.

  • Satya Nadella is set to testify in the Elon Musk vs. OpenAI trial in Oakland, California.
  • Microsoft is a codefendant, accused of aiding OpenAI's transition from nonprofit to for-profit structure.
  • Microsoft holds a 27% stake in OpenAI valued over $200 billion.
  • Emails from Nadella and other Microsoft executives have been submitted as evidence.
  • Elon Musk's lawyers aim to prove Microsoft encouraged OpenAI to abandon its original mission.
  • OpenAI and Microsoft deny wrongdoing, calling Musk a disgruntled competitor.
  • Sam Altman is expected to be the key witness later this week.
  • Greg Brockman's personal journals emerged as significant evidence regarding financial ambitions.
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