Ann Altman, the sister of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, has released the first hour of her deposition video in her civil lawsuit accusing her brother of childhood sexual abuse, a strategic and unusual move that has thrust one of Silicon Valley's most prominent families back into an uncomfortable spotlight. Altman published the footage on YouTube and promoted it via Instagram and Bluesky around October 3-4, with the video titled as her deposition in case 4:25-cv-00017-ZMB.
In the footage, which runs roughly 40 minutes of what was reportedly a nine-hour deposition, Altman is seen knitting with dark pink yarn while wearing a blue fleece she said belonged to her late father. When asked why she was knitting and whether it helped, she said she found it soothing. The visual details of the deposition, her steady demeanor, her rhythmic hand movements, have become part of the public record of a case that had previously proceeded largely in legal filings.
Altman filed the civil lawsuit in St. Louis federal court in January 2025, accusing Sam Altman of sexually abusing her between 1997 and 2006, beginning when she was three years old and he was twelve. During the deposition, when her brother's attorney asked whether the allegations in her complaint accurately reflected her experience, she agreed, saying that as much as a legal document of words could reflect any experience, traumatic or otherwise, it did.
According to Altman, she gave the deposition on August 18 and, under a protective order, gave permission for it to be fully released ten days later. She has said she is currently only allowed to share the first 40 minutes, and has called on the court to unseal the remaining hours she consented to have released, arguing that when testimony in a publicly filed case stays hidden even after the speaker has agreed to release it, it sends the wrong message.
All of the allegations against Sam Altman remain unadjudicated and have not been proven in court. Sam Altman has not publicly responded to the video release. OpenAI has declined to comment on the specific allegations, citing active family litigation, while affirming its commitment to executive conduct standards. The legal terrain is complex: a federal judge ruled that Altman's standalone sexual assault claims had expired in 2008 but allowed her to proceed under Missouri's child sexual abuse statute. Sam Altman filed to dismiss her punitive damages claims and countersued his sister for defamation over social media posts and a video referencing an almost tech billionaire abuser. In April 2026, both law firms representing Ann Altman withdrew, citing a breakdown in the attorney-client relationship.
Legal experts note that releasing deposition footage is an uncommon litigation strategy intended to shape public narrative before trial. No trial date has been set. Whether the release pressures the parties toward settlement or hardens their positions, the video has ensured that the case, and the broader question of how the tech industry handles misconduct claims against its most powerful figures, will not fade quietly.