During a public appearance by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman at an event in San Francisco, an unidentified man attempted to serve him with a court summons. The incident occurred in front of an audience and online viewers, where Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was also present. The event focused on themes of leadership and innovation.
This is reported by Business • Media
Incident on Stage and Participants’ Reactions
According to meeting organizer Manny Yekutiel, the man approached the stage immediately after Sam Altman and Steve Kerr sat down next to him. The unidentified individual held a sheet of paper and claimed to have a summons for the OpenAI leader. The host quickly intervened, took the document, and handed it over to security personnel. After that, the event continued for over an hour without further incidents. Attendees noted that Altman and Kerr appeared visibly surprised, but the situation was resolved swiftly.
Responsibility of Stop AI and the Organizers’ Position
The group Stop AI, known for its protests against the development of artificial superintelligence, claimed responsibility for organizing the incident. In their statement, Stop AI explained that the serving of the summons was related to a lawsuit regarding their peaceful protests against OpenAI, including blocking the company’s office. Activists aim to raise awareness about the risks they believe the development of artificial intelligence poses to humanity.
Our public defender successfully summoned Sam Altman to court, where we will be tried for repeatedly blocking the entrance to OpenAI and obstructing the road in front of their office through nonviolent means. All our nonviolent actions against OpenAI were..
Stop AI positions itself as a nonviolent civil resistance organization advocating for a complete and permanent ban on the development of artificial superintelligence. Activists believe this would help avoid mass job losses, the threat of human extinction, and other serious negative consequences.
At the time of this report, Sam Altman and representatives of OpenAI had not commented on the situation.
It is worth noting that in October 2025, OpenAI announced the completion of its recapitalization, dividing its assets between the nonprofit OpenAI Foundation and the commercial entity OpenAI Group. This new structure allowed the company to attract investments and expand its business without prior legal restrictions.
Previously, Sam Altman reported that OpenAI has an annual revenue significantly exceeding $13 billion.