OpenAI president Greg Brockman testified that Elon Musk actively pushed to transform the nonprofit into a for-profit company in 2017, following an AI victory in a Dota tournament. Musk spent months working with other founders to commercialize the organization, directly contradicting his current lawsuit accusing OpenAI of abandoning its nonprofit mission.

During the trial where Musk seeks $150 billion in damages, Brockman described a tense meeting where Musk threatened to withhold funding after being denied full control of the proposed for-profit entity. The testimony reveals Musk's direct involvement in OpenAI's commercial pivot before his departure from the organization he co-founded in 2015 with Brockman and Sam Altman.

Microsoft's $13 billion investment in OpenAI's capped profit structure adds financial context to the dispute. Brockman explained that the nonprofit would receive no funds until Microsoft and other partners received over $250 billion in compensation, highlighting the commercial tensions that preceded Musk's legal challenge against the company he helped establish.