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OpenAI CEO Sam Altman attends “Making Money With Charles Payne” at Fox Business Network Studios in New York on December 4, 2024.
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The sister of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Ann Altman, filed a lawsuit Monday, alleging that her brother regularly abused her between 1997 and 2006.
The lawsuit, which was 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, known as Annie, was three years old and Sam was 12. The statement alleges that the acts of violence occurred “several times a week,” starting 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 that 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 such as Xbut this is the first time she has taken him to court. She is represented by Ryan Mahoney, whose Illinois firm specializes in sexual assault and harassment cases.
The lawsuit seeks a jury trial and damages of more than $75,000.
In the joint statement on X along with his mother Connie and brothers Jack and Max, Sam Altman denied the allegations.
“Annie has made very hurtful and completely untrue statements about our family, and especially about Sam,” the statement read. “We have decided 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 matter.’
Their response said that “all of these allegations are completely untrue” and added that “this situation is causing tremendous pain to our entire family.” They said Ann Altman faces “mental health issues” and “refuses conventional treatment and lashes out at family members who are genuinely trying to help.”
Sam Altman rose to international prominence after debuting the OpenAI AI 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.
Altman was briefly ousted as CEO by OpenAI’s board in November 2023, but was quickly reinstated due to pressure from investors and employees.
This is not the only lawsuit that the technical manager faces.
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 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 complaint filed in San Francisco state court and later taken to federal court.
Last month, OpenAI clapped back against Musk, claiming in a blog post that in 2017 Musk “not only wanted, but created a non-profit organization” to serve as the company’s proposed new structure.
