Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.
Elon Musk loses his blockbuster case against OpenAIIt required less than two hours of deliberation today for a jury in Oakland, Calif., to reject Elon Musk’s $150 billion lawsuit against OpenAI and its chief executive, Sam Altman. Musk, who co-founded OpenAI with Altman as a nonprofit in 2015, had accused the artificial intelligence giant of “stealing a charity” by putting commercial gain over the public good. But the nine-member jury found that Musk had failed to file his lawsuit within a time frame required by law, and the judge accepted the decision. Musk’s lawyer said he would appeal. The case was closely watched because it had the potential to upend the A.I. landscape. But for now, Altman is free to solidify his control atop one of the industry’s most talked-about companies. “OpenAI gets to celebrate and breathe a sigh of relief after this verdict,” our tech reporter Mike Isaac told me. “But they shouldn’t rest too easy. They still have to worry about building their business for an initial public offering later this year, and fend off strong competitors like Anthropic and Google, both of which are nipping at Altman’s heels.” Just tuning in? Here’s what to know about the court fight.
Justice Dept.’s $1.8 billion fund could compensate Trump alliesThe Trump administration announced today that it had created a new $1.8 billion fund to compensate people who say they were unfairly targeted by the Biden Justice Department and Democrats. The move could funnel taxpayer money to President Trump’s political allies. The unusual fund was created in exchange for the president dropping his $10 billion lawsuit against the I.R.S. It was an apparent effort to skirt oversight by a judge, who had expressed concern that the suit represented self-dealing between the president and a department run by his former defense lawyer, Todd Blanche. In other Trump administration news:
Railroad strike disrupts commutes into New York CityMore than 3,500 workers on America’s busiest passenger rail service, the Long Island Rail Road, walked off the job during the weekend over demands for higher wages. Now in its third day, the strike has shut down the entire service, upending the daily commute into New York City for roughly 270,000 passengers a day. The workers — who make an average of $136,000 per year, but have not received a pay bump since 2022 — are asking for a raise about one percentage point higher than management has offered.
3 killed in a shooting at a San Diego mosqueAt least three men were fatally shot at a San Diego mosque today before two suspected shooters, both teenagers, were found dead nearby. Here’s what we know. The authorities said that the bodies of the suspects — one 17, the other 19 — were found in a vehicle near the mosque, the Islamic Center of San Diego, and they appeared to have died by self-inflicted gunshots. More top news
When tornado weather hits, many meteorologists use paper and pencil to make their forecasts, because it “allows you to feel the weather in your veins.” Here’s how they do it.
A lost dance glides againThe acclaimed painter and sculptor Robert Rauschenberg was mistakenly included on a list of choreographers for a 1963 performance. Instead of walking away, he crafted a dance featuring roller skates, bicycle wheels and parachute wings. “Pelican,” as the performance was called, was lost but never forgotten. Using photographs and archival footage, the dance was recently reimagined by the Trisha Brown Dance Company. It will premiere tonight. You can watch excerpts here. For more ballet: Megan Fairchild, 41, is delivering her farewell performance this weekend. The New York City Ballet star is still dancing magnificently.
50 years ago, American wine scored an upset victoryOn May 24, 1976, nine French judges assembled at the Intercontinental Hotel in Paris for a blind tasting of 20 wines. Twelve were American; 8 were French. Surprising everyone, not least the judges, the two bottles that came out on top came from Napa Valley. The “Judgment of Paris” kicked off a period of growth and evolution in American wine. Insular growing regions began to learn from each other, and now good wine is being made all over the country — New York’s Finger Lakes region, Vermont, Virginia. Our chief wine critic, Eric Asimov, has some recommendations.
Dinner table topics
Cook: The tuna melt recipe will create a memorable meal. Watch “Moonstruck” or another one of these great free movies. Read these romance novels recommended by the best-selling author Emily Henry. Test your ability to spot poison ivy. Take the latest Flashback history quiz. Play: Here are today’s Connections, |
