Annie Altman, the younger sister of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, filed an amended civil complaint on April 1 in U.S. District Court here, reframing her allegations of repeated childhood sexual abuse under Missouri’s extended statute of limitations for such cases.
The filing follows a March 20 ruling by U.S. District Judge Zachary M. Bluestone, who dismissed Annie Altman’s original common-law claims for sexual assault and battery as time-barred but granted her leave to pursue the case specifically under Missouri’s Childhood Sexual Abuse statute (Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.046). That law provides a longer window for claims stemming from incidents that occurred when the alleged victim was a minor. Her legal team met the judge’s April 3 deadline by submitting the amended version one day early.
According to the complaint, the alleged abuse took place between 1997 and 2006 at the family home in Clayton, Missouri, a St. Louis suburb. Annie Altman claims the incidents began when she was 3 years old and her brother was approximately 12, escalating over nearly a decade to include forcible touching, oral sex, molestation, sodomy, battery and rape. She is seeking a jury trial and damages, including punitive damages. Her attorney, Ryan Mahoney, described the March ruling as strictly procedural and said the team would continue gathering evidence.
Sam Altman has categorically denied the allegations, calling them “utterly untrue.” In a public statement issued with his mother and brothers shortly after the original January 2025 filing, the family attributed the claims to Annie Altman’s reported mental health challenges and long-standing family estrangement. Court filings from Altman’s side characterize the lawsuit as an attempt at extortion, noting that the family had provided her with ongoing financial support, including monthly payments.
Judge Bluestone’s order also allowed Altman’s counterclaims for defamation and abuse of process to proceed. Those claims stem in part from Annie Altman’s public social media posts between 2021 and 2024 on platforms including X and TikTok, in which she referenced alleged abuse by a family member she sometimes described as “an almost tech billionaire.” The judge ruled that a reasonable reader could connect those statements to Sam Altman, though Altman must still prove the elements of his counterclaim, including falsity and actual malice.
The case, which remains active in federal court, is now positioned to move into discovery. No trial date has been set, and further motions or a potential settlement remain possible. The allegations have not been proven in court, and no criminal charges have been filed against Sam Altman in connection with the claims.
