OpenAI CEO Sam Altman attends “Making Money With Charles Payne” at Fox Business Network Studios in New York on December 4, 2024.
Mike Coppola | Getty Images
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s sister, Ann Altman, filed the lawsuit Monday, alleging that her brother regularly sexually assaulted her between 1997 and 2006.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, alleges the abuse occurred at the family’s home in Clayton, Missouri, and began when Ann, who goes by the name Annie, was three years old and Sam was 12. .the filing alleges that the violent activities took place “several times a week,” beginning with oral sex and later penetration.
The lawsuit alleges that “as a direct and proximate result of the aforementioned acts of sexual assault,” the plaintiff suffered “severe emotional distress, mental anguish and depression, which is expected to continue into the future.”
The younger Altman has publicly made similar allegations of sexual assault against her brother in the past platforms like Xbut this is the first time she has taken him to court. She is represented by Ryan Mahoney, whose Illinois-based firm specializes in matters including sexual assault and harassment.
The lawsuit seeks a jury trial and damages in excess of $75,000.
In the wrist statement about X with his mother Connie and his brothers Jack and Max, Sam Altman denied the allegations.
“Annie has made deeply hurtful and completely untrue claims about our family, and Sam in particular,” the statement read. “We have chosen not to respond publicly, out of respect for her privacy and ours. However, she has now taken legal action against Sam and we feel we have no choice but to resolve this.”
Their response said that “all of these allegations are completely false,” adding that “this situation is causing our entire family tremendous pain.” They said Ann Altman faces “mental health challenges” and “refuses conventional treatment and attacks family members who are genuinely trying to help.”
Altman himself has gained international prominence since the debut of OpenAI’s artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT in November 2022. With support Microsoftthe company was recently valued at $157 billion, with funding coming from chipmaker Thrive Capital NvidiaSoftBank and others.
OpenAI’s board of directors briefly removed Altman as CEO in November 2023, but he was quickly reinstated due to pressure from investors and employees.
This isn’t the only lawsuit the tech executive is facing.
In March, Tesla and CEO of SpaceX Elon Musk sued OpenAI and co-founders Altman and Greg Brockman, alleging breach of contract and fiduciary duty. Musk, who now runs a rival AI startup, xAI, co-founded OpenAI when it started as a nonprofit in 2015. Musk stepped down from the board in 2018 and has publicly criticized OpenAI for allegedly abandoning its original mission.
Musk is suing to keep OpenAI from turning into a for-profit company. In June, Musk withdrew the original lawsuit filed in state court in San Francisco and later refiled in federal court.
Last month, OpenAI clapped back against Musk, claiming in a blog post that in 2017 Musk “not only wanted, but actually created a for-profit company” to serve as the proposed new company structure.
