OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Elon Musk's legal representatives faced off with OpenAI in court Tuesday as a federal judge weighed the billionaire's ask for a court order that would obstruct the ChatGPT maker from transforming 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 hurt if she does not intervene to stop OpenAI from moving forward with its transition from a nonprofit research laboratory to a for-profit corporation.

But the judge also raised concerns about OpenAI and its relationship with organization partner Microsoft and said she would not stop the case from relocating to trial as quickly as next year so a jury can choose.

"It is plausible that what Mr. Musk is stating holds true. We ´ ll discover out. He ´ ll sit on the stand," she said.

Musk, an early OpenAI investor and board member, elclasificadomx.com took legal action against the artificial intelligence business in 2015, first in a California state court and later on in federal court, alleging it had actually betrayed its starting aims as a not-for-profit research lab benefiting the public great. Musk had actually invested about $45 million in the start-up from its founding till 2018, his legal representative said Tuesday.

Musk escalated the legal conflict late in 2015, claims and defendants and requesting a court order that would stop OpenAI ´ s plans to transform itself into a for-profit service more fully. Musk likewise added his own AI business, xAI, as a plaintiff.

Also targeted by Musk's claim is OpenAI's close organization partner Microsoft and tech business owner Reid Hoffman, a former OpenAI board member who likewise rests on Microsoft's board.

Gonzalez Rogers said she has a high bar for authorizing the kind of initial injunction that Musk desires but hasn't yet ruled on the request. She did say she had "substantial issues" with 2 people linked 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 think that she was sitting there listening to all the discussions and not telling anybody? 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 really should not be there," she said.

Hoffman, a co-founder of LinkedIn, has been on Microsoft ´ s board because quickly after the tech giant bought the job networking website. 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 accused, was included as a non-voting member of OpenAI ´ s board in the consequences of Altman ´ s ouster after Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella sought more stability on the board. But months later, she was dropped from the OpenAI board as U.S. antitrust enforcers were revealing concerns about such plans on business boards.

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

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

Tuesday's hearing was originally set for January but was held off after Musk's attorney Marc Toberoff said his house was destroyed in the Pacific Palisades wildfire.

Musk, grandtribunal.org who did not attend the hearing, has actually declared in the claim that the business are breaking the terms of his fundamental contributions to the charity. Judge Gonzalez Rogers called it a "stretch" to claim "permanent harm" to Musk, and called the case "billionaires vs. billionaires." She questioned why Musk invested 10s of millions in OpenAI without a composed contract. Toberoff said it was because the relationship between Altman and Musk at the time was "built on trust" and raovatonline.org the 2 were extremely close.

"That is simply a great deal of money" to invest "on a handshake," the judge said.

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

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

. Emails revealed by OpenAI reveal Musk had actually also looked for to be CEO and grew frustrated after two other OpenAI co-founders said he would hold too much power as a significant shareholder and wiki.whenparked.com president if the start-up prospered in its goal to attain better-than-human AI referred to as synthetic basic intelligence, or fishtanklive.wiki AGI. Musk has actually long voiced issues about how advanced types of AI could threaten mankind.

Altman eventually was successful in becoming CEO and has remained so except for a duration in 2023 when he was fired and then restored days later after the board that ousted him was changed.

OpenAI has looked for to demonstrate Musk ´ s early assistance for the concept of making OpenAI a for-profit organization so it might raise money for the hardware and computer system power that AI requires.

Musk is not the only one difficult OpenAI's for-profit shift. Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms has asked California's chief law officer to obstruct it, and the workplace 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 attorneys initially said they would be all set 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.

-------