OpenAI Co-Founder Ilya Sutskever Testifies on Altman Ouster, Holds $7B Stake

According to Beating, OpenAI co-founder and former Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever testified Monday in the Musk v. OpenAI case, disclosing details of his push to remove CEO Sam Altman. Sutskever said he spent approximately one year gathering evidence of Altman's pattern of "persistent dishonesty," including inciting executive conflicts. He prepared a 52-page memo at the board's request and held "extended discussions" with then-CTO Mira Murati about replacing Altman before the November 2023 ouster, which he described as a "last resort."

Sutskever disclosed he currently holds OpenAI equity worth approximately $7 billion (up from $5 billion in November 2025), making him one of the largest known individual shareholders. He also confirmed for the first time that during Altman's brief removal, remaining board members explored a merger proposal with competitor Anthropic to have Anthropic assume leadership of OpenAI, though he was not "excited" about the deal. The trial enters closing arguments Thursday, with Altman expected to testify Tuesday.