A federal jury swiftly rejected Elon Musk's $150 billion lawsuit against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, finding the tech mogul filed his case too late. The nine-member panel in Oakland deliberated less than two hours before deciding Musk missed the statute of limitations. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers dismissed the claims after the verdict, while Musk immediately announced plans to appeal the decision that dealt a significant blow to his credibility in the AI race.

Musk had accused OpenAI leaders of "stealing a charity" by abandoning its nonprofit roots to become profitable while taking billions from Microsoft. The lawsuit stemmed from Musk's departure from OpenAI in 2018 following a power struggle with Altman. OpenAI's lawyers countered that Musk himself had attempted to transform the nonprofit into a for-profit entity during his tenure, calling the case "sour grapes" from someone who exited years before ChatGPT's success.

The verdict preserves OpenAI's position as a dominant force in artificial intelligence and clears a path for its initial public offering, which could become one of the largest in history. Microsoft, which invested over $13 billion in OpenAI, welcomed the decision. Despite the legal setback, Musk's social media attacks on the judge continued, while OpenAI faces ongoing competition from Anthropic and Google in the rapidly evolving AI market.