A federal judge has ruled that Elon Musk cannot be questioned about his alleged ketamine use during his upcoming trial against OpenAI, calling the topic irrelevant to the core dispute. The decision prevents lawyers for OpenAI and its chief executive, Sam Altman, from raising the issue unless they can present stronger evidence linking it directly to the case. Limited questions about Musk’s visits to the Burning Man festival may still be allowed.

The trial, set to begin on April 28 in Oakland, will focus on Musk’s claim that OpenAI’s founders misled him about keeping the organisation nonprofit after he contributed about 38 million dollars in its early days. Musk is seeking up to 134 billion dollars in damages from OpenAI and Microsoft, arguing he is entitled to a share of the company’s current valuation. Both companies have denied the allegations and strongly disputed the scale of the damages sought.

Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers indicated that any damages awarded by the jury would likely be advisory, with the final amount determined by the court. She also expressed skepticism about the methodology used by Musk’s financial expert, while stressing that prominent technology executives testifying in the case would receive no special treatment in court. The trial is expected to last about four weeks and feature several high-profile witnesses.