--- title: "Sam Altman Faces Nightmare Questions in Cross-Examination" description: "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman faced what sounds like a truly awful day on the stand this week during cross-examination in the ongoing Musk v. Altman court saga, as the opposing counsel [hammered him]() with ruthless questions about his growing record…" date: "2026-05-14" modified: "2026-05-14" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/sam-altman-cross-examination" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "OpenAI" tags: - "lawsuits" --- # Sam Altman Faces Nightmare Questions in Cross-Examination ![OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is shown in a light blue shirt and matching tie, holding a smartphone in his right hand and adjusting his jacket with his left hand.]() *Josh Edelson / AFP via Getty Images; Futurism* OpenAI CEO Sam Altman faced what sounds like a truly awful day on the stand this week during cross-examination in the ongoing Musk v. Altman court saga, as the opposing counsel [hammered him]() with ruthless questions about his growing record of alleged dishonesty. Steven Molo, the lead attorney for plaintiff Elon Musk, attacked Altman with a series of questions about his [rumored mendaciousness]() — or, as the former OpenAI board put it in its [fantastically botched]() 2023 attempt to oust Altman from his chief executive role, the OpenAI leader's alleged failure to be "consistently candid" with other executives. "Are you completely trustworthy?" Molo asked Altman, who responded: "I believe so." "You don't know whether you're completely trustworthy?" Molo pressed back. "I'll just amend my answer to yes," Altman shot back. Later, he added: "I believe I am an honest and trustworthy business person." Molo then pressed Altman on specific — and extremely unflattering — statements given by other witnesses during the trial, reminding Altman that he was referred to as "deceptive and a liar" by former OpenAI colleagues. Indeed, [during a video deposition](), OpenAI's former chief technology officer Mira Murati told lawyers that Altman had made false statements to her about safety practices, allegedly telling her that company's lawyers had cleared a new AI model to bypass regular safety procedures when they hadn't. She also confirmed that Altman had "undermined" her as CTO and "pitted" executives against each other. (Murati exited OpenAI after Altman's brief firing-and-rehiring and is now CEO at an AI lab called Thinking Machines.) And former OpenAI board member Tasha McCauley [testified]() in her video deposition that there were "repeated crisis events stemming from Sam's behavior." "We had real doubts that we could trust what the CEO was telling us," McCauley continued, stating that Altman's fibbing fed a "toxic culture" of dishonesty. Molo doubled down on these testimonies while grilling Altman, [asking]() if the CEO was "aware" that McCauley had accused him of "creating a toxic culture of lying in OpenAI." Altman, for his part, told Molo he did "not hear" McCauley's testimony. Brutal! Though whether Molo convincingly painted Altman as a liar — and whether Altman's trustworthiness impacts the allegation at the heart of the lawsuit, which is that OpenAI's transition to becoming a [for-profit company]() was illegal — is up to a jury to decide. That in mind, it could be in Altman's favor that Musk's cross-examination [wasn't exactly flattering](), either. **More on Musk v. Altman:** *[Sam Altman Accuses Elon Musk of Laughing at Memes During Important OpenAI Meetings]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()