Elon Musk has escalated his legal battle against artificial intelligence firm OpenAI and tech giant Microsoft, formally seeking damages ranging from $79 billion to $134 billion. The lawsuit, filed in a US federal court, accuses OpenAI of fraud, alleging that the company, which Musk co-founded in 2015, betrayed its original nonprofit mission by transitioning to a for-profit entity and partnering extensively with Microsoft. Musk contends that his initial investment of $38 million, representing about 60% of OpenAI's early seed funding, along with significant non-monetary contributions, entitles him to a portion of OpenAI's current estimated $500 billion valuation. In a crucial development, a federal judge in Oakland, California, recently rejected motions from both OpenAI and Microsoft to dismiss the claims, paving the way for the case to proceed to a jury trial. The trial is officially set for late April 2026. Musk's legal team has detailed the damages based on calculations by a financial economist expert witness, arguing that the 'wrongful gains' made by OpenAI and Microsoft are significantly larger than Musk's initial contributions. OpenAI has vehemently denied the allegations, stating that Musk's lawsuit is 'baseless' and part of an 'ongoing pattern of harassment' by a competitor. Microsoft has also denied aiding or abetting OpenAI in any alleged wrongdoing. This high-profile legal battle underscores significant questions about the governance and commercialization of powerful AI technologies and holds global implications for the future of the industry.