A federal judge in Oakland has cleared major portions of Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI Inc. and Microsoft Corp., ruling that enough factual allegations survive to send the case to a jury in late April 2026. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers denied motions by both defendants to dismiss claims that Musk says show OpenAI abandoned its founding charitable purpose and misled early donors. Musk, a co-founder of OpenAI who left the board in 2018 and later launched his own AI company in 2023, filed the suit in August 2024. Judge Gonzalez Rogers highlighted internal OpenAI communications cited in Musk’s filings as central factual material. Musk’s lead counsel expressed appreciation for the court’s consideration and indicated they are preparing for trial.

Source: ABC News January 16, 2026 21:49 UTC