Photo: The Associated Press
Based on OpenAI’s current valuation of $852 billion, established following its March funding round, the value of such a stake is approximately $42.6 billion. If the initiative is implemented, the government would, for the first time, acquire a direct stake in a leading U.S. artificial intelligence developer.
According to the Financial Times, Altman is proposing to extend this model to other market leaders—Anthropic, Google, and Meta. As a result, the federal government could become a co-owner of a significant portion of the U.S. artificial intelligence industry. It is not yet known whether the companies are willing to support this initiative.
The proposal builds on Altman’s ideas for creating a kind of “public welfare fund” that would hold stakes in AI companies and distribute a portion of the revenue among U.S. citizens. As an example, he previously cited the Alaska Permanent Fund—a fund that annually distributes a portion of oil revenue to the state’s residents.
Other market participants are also discussing similar approaches. Anthropic previously proposed a “digital dividend” mechanism that would redistribute a portion of the AI industry’s revenue through the tax system.
According to the Financial Times, Altman has already discussed his initiative with U.S. President Donald Trump, Secretary of Commerce Howard Latnik, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, and Senator Bernie Sanders.
However, there is no consensus yet on the future model. Sanders considers Altman’s proposal too cautious and advocates for a much tougher approach—the introduction of a one-time 50 percent tax on shares of OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI to ensure that society receives a more substantial share of the future value of AI companies.
Trump confirmed that negotiations are taking place but stressed that it is too early to speak of any agreements.
Even if the initiative does not move forward, the fact that it is being discussed already signals a noticeable shift in Washington’s approach to artificial intelligence. Whereas the focus until now has been on regulating the industry, for the first time there is discussion of the possibility of government participation in the capital of the largest technology companies.
