Trump Administration Eyes Equity Stake in OpenAI as Public Wealth Fund Takes Shape

The Trump administration might take an equity stake in OpenAI

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he's spoken to AI companies about striking deals "where the American people can benefit from the success of AI." Trump does not seem to have mentioned specific companies in his comments, but OpenAI is a likely candidate, especially after CNBC reported that the Trump administration has indeed been discussing an equity stake with the AI company. CNBC said some of that equity could be used to seed a "Public Wealth Fund" recently proposed by OpenAI. As outlined by the company, proceeds from the fund "could be distributed directly to citizens, allowing more people to participate directly in the upside of AI-driven growth, regardless of their starting wealth or access to capital." According to Bloomberg, when reporters on Air Force One asked Trump about the idea, he replied that he's been talking to AI executives about "concepts where pieces could be given to the American public, where the American public essentially becomes a partner with the companies." Bloomberg also reports that CEO Sam Altman has been discussing the idea of a government stake in major AI companies since early 2025. This seems to align with Trump's broader interest in government ownership of for-profit companies -- most notably, with the government taking a 10% stake in struggling chipmaker Intel last year. The idea has also found some traction on the left, with Senator Bernie Sanders this week proposing a one-time, 50% tax that companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI (which is part of SpaceX) would pay in the form of stock. With all of those businesses potentially going public this year, Sanders argued this tax would "give the public a direct role in determining the future of this technology" and "guarantee that the trillions of dollars potentially generated by A.I. are used to improve the lives of all of us." David Sacks, an investor who recently stepped down from his role as Trump's AI and crypto czar, posted that he can see why Sanders' idea resonates, "including with many on the right," but warned it would actually "accelerate the corporate-government fusion we're already sliding toward." Elsewhere on social media, former Microsoft employee Dare Obasanjo suggested, "The groundwork is already being laid for a government bailout of OpenAI."

Trump says he thinks AI companies will agree to 'giving back' to the public

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he expects top artificial intelligence companies to agree to "giving back" to the public, an apparent reference to a possible government stake in the firms. "I'm going to have meetings with the top 12 or 15 executives very shortly, ⁠and we're talking about giving back something to the public, and if we do that, the public will become very rich," Trump told reporters in the White House's Oval Office. "I think they'll do that, and I think it'll make it very popular." Concern is growing among Americans about AI negatively impacting their lives. Half of Americans fear that the ⁠rise of AI could put them or someone in their household out of work, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday. AI companies Anthropic, OpenAI, Google and Meta did not immediately respond ⁠to requests for comment. A Trump spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for more details about the president meeting with ⁠AI executives. OpenAI is targeting a valuation of up to $1 trillion, Reuters previously reported. An agreement to give the ⁠U.S. government equity stakes could have a massive impact on the U.S. government's finances. Reporting by Bo Erickson and Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Mark Porter Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab * Suggested Topics: * Artificial Intelligence Bo Erickson Thomson Reuters Bo Erickson is a White House reporter based in Washington, DC. He focuses on the Trump administration's domestic, political, and cultural agenda, as well as daily news throughout the world. Previously, he covered Congress and US politics for Reuters, and before that, at CBS News. He is proud to be a Minnesotan at heart. Please send story ideas to: [email protected] Trevor Hunnicutt Thomson Reuters Trevor Hunnicutt is White House Correspondent at Reuters News. He writes about U.S. foreign and domestic policy and regularly travels with the President of the United States. Prior to joining the White House team in 2021, he covered presidential campaigns, economics, finance and investing for many years. He has also served on the board of the White House Correspondents' Association. Hunnicutt holds a bachelor's degree from Pomona College and a master's from the London School of Economics. Courtney Rozen Thomson Reuters Courtney Rozen reports on the world's largest technology companies from Washington, D.C., focusing on the relationship between the tech industry and the U.S. government. She reported on DOGE and the federal workforce during the first year of U.S. President Donald Trump's second term. Prior to joining Reuters, she was a White House correspondent at Bloomberg Government. She graduated from American University with a master's degree in journalism.

Trump administration, OpenAI discussing possible government stake in the AI startup

U.S. government reportedly weighing financial stake in AI companies OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and the White House are in ongoing talks about a possible government stake in the artificial intelligence company, CNBC confirmed on Friday. The discussions have been in progress for more than a year, as Altman first shared the idea with the Trump administration in 2025, according to a source familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the details are confidential. The talks continued this week as Altman met with a range of lawmakers and officials in Washington, D.C., about regulation and the latest developments in AI. As part of the potential agreement, OpenAI could donate equity to the U.S. government to seed something like the "Public Wealth Fund" that the company outlined in its April policy proposal, the person said. OpenAI said the fund could "invest in diversified, long-term assets" and would allow citizens to participate in the "upside" of AI growth, possibly by receiving the fund's returns directly, according to the proposal. No official investment terms have been decided, and the details are still subject to change. Notus was first to report the recent talks.

Trump Muses About Government Taking a Piece of A.I. Companies

Tripp Mickle reported from San Francisco. Ana Swanson and Cecilia Kang reported from Washington. For the second time in a week, President Trump said Americans could get rich by sharing in the wealth from artificial intelligence companies. In the Oval Office on Wednesday, Mr. Trump said that he would soon host a meeting with the top "12 or 15 executives" in the A.I. industry to discuss the idea of companies "giving back something to the public." He added, "If we do that, the public will become very rich." The comments built on Mr. Trump's remarks on Friday when he was first asked about the U.S. government acquiring stakes in A.I. companies. He said then that he wanted to meet with the companies to discuss providing the United States with stakes in their business, which "could be given to the American public." Though it's unclear how such an arrangement would work and when such a meeting would take place, Mr. Trump has turned up the temperature on a hot topic in Washington and Silicon Valley as the tech industry reckons with a growing backlash against A.I. This month, Bernie Sanders, the progressive senator from Vermont, proposed that the federal government levy a one-time, 50 percent tax on A.I. companies that would be paid in stock. His rationale was that the technology was built on Americans' collective intelligence -- songs, computer code, scientific research, videos and more -- so everyone should share in the wealth it creates. Silicon Valley appears to be on the verge of a new generation of wealth creation thanks to A.I. But this boom could come with a big downside: Many in the industry worry it will destroy the jobs of white collar workers, ranging from highly paid software programmers to back-office accountants. The risks of mass layoffs have led A.I. executives to float a series of unusual ideas that would relieve pressure on the companies responsible for those job losses. One of those ideas was to give Americans equity in their businesses, so that everyday people could share their wealth. The idea has taken on new urgency as public opposition to A.I. swells. Anxieties about job cuts, soaring energy prices and social disruptions have led people across the political spectrum to rally against the technology. In a March Quinnipiac University poll of American adults, 55 percent said they viewed A.I. as a force for harm rather than good. And some lawmakers increasingly worry that tech companies in general are growing too powerful. This year, OpenAI and Anthropic, the leading A.I. start-ups that are each worth nearly $1 trillion and could have initial public offerings this year, have proposed creating public funds that would redistribute some of their wealth in the case of mass layoffs. One way to do that would be through a sovereign wealth fund, or government-run investment fund, that holds stakes in their businesses and distributes dividends. "The notion that the government should be a partner in new technology is not new but the idea that the government and American citizens should have equity is a radical departure from the free markets approach of the world," said David Yoffie, a professor at Harvard Business School. In a 14-page paper Anthropic released on Wednesday, it said it wasn't "yet ready to advocate specific policies for this scenario" but suggested lawmakers evaluate a few options, including a so-called universal basic income. (The New York Times sued OpenAI and Microsoft in 2023, claiming copyright infringement of news content related to A.I. systems. The two companies have denied those claims.) Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, first publicly floated the idea of giving people stock in a 2021 blog post. Mr. Altman described a future when A.I. would render jobs largely meaningless. Rather than tax labor, as the government does today, he proposed a new system where A.I. companies are taxed on their market value and forced to pay the government in stock, so that "all citizens over 18 would get an annual distribution, in dollars and company shares." During a visit to Washington in January 2025, Mr. Altman floated the idea directly with Mr. Trump, suggesting OpenAI would donate shares in its business to seed a government investment fund for A.I., three people familiar with those confidential conversations said. In the months that followed, other OpenAI executives raised it with administration officials, who dismissed it as a bid by the company to raise money. Last week, Mr. Altman returned to Washington to push a new plan. OpenAI had released a 13-page policy paper comparing A.I. to the Industrial Revolution and calling on lawmakers to "respond to technological upheaval with ambition." It proposed a "Public Wealth fund that provides every citizen -- including those not invested in financial markets -- with a stake in A.I.-driven economic growth." Mr. Altman visited the White House but didn't raise the idea directly with Mr. Trump, two of the people said. He also raised the concept of a sovereign wealth fund with Mr. Sanders, who said Mr. Altman objected to the idea of giving the American people 50 percent of equity. After Mr. Altman's visit, Mr. Trump publicly mused about the idea of acquiring equity in A.I. companies. Government discussions over those stakes have been extremely preliminary, with some current and former government officials saying they were unaware of any real plan or vehicle to acquire stock. The companies have yet to receive an invitation from the White House to meet with Mr. Trump about the topic, said people close to the companies who spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the topic. Behind Mr. Trump's idea appears to be one animating idea: The president likes owning equity in businesses. In less than a year, the Trump administration has snapped up ownership shares in more than 20 companies, an unusual practice that is reshaping the relationship between the government and the private sector. The government's growing portfolio involves companies in steel, minerals, nuclear energy, semiconductors and other fields, including prominent firms like Intel, U.S. Steel and Westinghouse. Some of the deals are preliminary and not all have been finalized. More than half a dozen of the companies are involved in mining or the production of rare earth magnets, a sector the United States has been trying to quickly build up after China introduced export curbs last year. Another nine of the companies are involved in quantum computing, an emerging technology the United States would like to dominate. It's not clear what exact approach the administration would take with A.I. companies, but the proposals appear to involve the government being given the stakes rather than paying for them. One possibility would be for the shares to go to new investment accounts known as the Trump accounts, which were created through last year's tax bill. Brad Gerstner, the founder of Altimeter Capital Management, which invested in Anthropic and OpenAI and has worked with the administration on investment accounts, said on social media that the shares should be held by citizens through their Trump accounts or in a pooled trust that will be divided among people in the future. "I don't trust shares in the hands of some future politicians that can coerce or liquidate & spend on whatever their political beliefs," he wrote on social media. Aaron Bartnick, a former White House technology official in the Biden administration, said he was not aware of any existing legal mechanism that would allow the government to accept such a gift. The stock, he added, is "incredibly valuable." "These companies are not typically in the business of giving it away for free," he said. "So it begs the question: What do they feel they are getting in return?"

US government could take a stake in OpenAI as Trump explores AI equity plan

Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years. TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust. A hot potato: The US government taking a stake in Intel last year was surprising enough, but Washington might not stop at chipmakers. Senior officials have reportedly discussed the idea of taking equity stakes in leading AI companies, including OpenAI, as the Trump administration looks for ways to ensure the public benefits from the artificial intelligence boom. According to NOTUS, senior US officials have held preliminary discussions with major AI firms about the government receiving shares in their companies. The details aren't set in stone, but the talks have reportedly centered on AI giants voluntarily handing over equity rather than the government simply buying stock on the open market. Returns from those stakes could then be used for public purposes, including a possible dividend for American households. President Trump appeared to confirm that the idea is being considered while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One. He said there are concepts under which "pieces" of AI companies could be given to the American public, creating what he described as a partnership between these firms and US citizens. Trump also said his team would "look into" the proposal and suggested meetings with AI executives could take place soon. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has reportedly discussed the idea with government officials since Trump returned to office. NOTUS says Altman first raised the concept directly with the president in 2025 and has brought it up again with senior officials in recent weeks. Anthropic, however, is reportedly not involved in conversations about handing equity to the government. In April, OpenAI published a report calling for a Public Wealth Fund that would give every citizen, including those without stock market investments, a stake in AI-driven economic growth. The fund could invest in AI companies and other businesses benefiting from the technology, allowing ordinary Americans to share in the upside - and perhaps, in an ironic twist, offer financial help if their jobs are automated by AI. Also read: Anthropic is blacklisted by the Pentagon and being used by the NSA at the same time "Create a Public Wealth Fund that provides every citizen - including those not invested in financial markets - with a stake in AI-driven economic growth," OpenAI's report states. "Policymakers and AI companies should work together to determine how to best seed the Fund, which could invest in diversified, long-term assets that capture growth in both AI companies and the broader set of firms adopting and deploying AI." Last summer, the US government took a nearly 10% stake in Intel by converting $11.1 billion in CHIPS Act funding into equity. The passive ownership did not include board seats, but it marked a new direction in how Washington supports strategically important tech companies. The government has since explored or announced similar equity-based support for rare earth and quantum computing firms, suggesting Intel was not a one-off. Critics warn that the government could become both shareholder and regulator in these AI companies, creating obvious conflicts of interest. Others argue that if the firms really do become some of the most valuable businesses in history, taxpayers should get more than promises of future benefits.

Trump to meet AI leaders over US investment in their companies

US President Donald Trump is planning to meet the bosses of some of the country's most notable artificial intelligence (AI) companies to discuss the government taking a financial stake in their future. Speaking on Air Force One, Trump said the goal of the US government investing in AI companies was to "create almost a partnership with the American public". He expects to meet leaders of major AI companies at the White House - likely next week. Although the president did not name specific companies, the biggest companies in the US working on AI are Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, SpaceX and Anthropic - the latter two of which are expected to go public in the coming weeks. Representatives of those companies could not be immediately reached for comment. Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, this week travelled to Washington DC and met Senator Bernie Sanders. Sanders recently said he intended to propose a sort of sovereign wealth fund in which the US would take a 50% stake in AI companies. Asked about Sanders' plan, President Trump insisted he had been considering the US investing in AI companies for a year, but did not dismiss the senator's notion. "Where economics are concerned, we have things that aren't that far apart," Trump said. Dario Amodei, chief executive of Anthropic, met senior White House officials a few weeks ago. Although Anthropic is currently embroiled in a lawsuit with the US Department of Defense over its refusal to accept broad new contract terms and subsequent excision from government operations, the White House meeting was a sign of easing tensions. Anthropic this week publicly praised President Trump's Executive Order on AI. And Jack Clark, a co-founder of the company, told BBC's Newsnight on Thursday that Anthropic was "in daily conversations with the US government and we're finding ways to be helpful to national security".

The Leopard Is Eating David Sacks's Face

President Donald Trump confirmed Friday that he's thinking about the U.S. government entering into some kind of partnership with the major AI companies, perhaps even taking a stake like he did with Intel. Trump is meeting with the leaders of the AI companies, possibly as soon as next week, to chat about the details. All of that is bad news for David Sacks, who wrote an extremely long tweet on Friday criticizing Bernie Sanders and his call for legislation that would allow the government to take a 50% ownership stake in the AI companies. But Sacks may as well have been criticizing Donald Trump, ostensibly his old boss, because the Sanders plan sounds very similar to Trump's, at least based on what little we know of it so far. NOTUS was the first to report Thursday that OpenAI's Sam Altman has been talking with Trump about the government taking a stake in the AI company. It echoes what some of the left have considered, and Sacks focused on those people in his criticism of the idea, not Trump. "While I'm no fan of socialism or arbitrary confiscations of wealth, I can see why Bernie Sanders' proposal (for the government to take a 50% stake in AI companies) resonates, including with many on the right," Sacks wrote at the start of his tweet Thursday. Sacks, who previously served as Trump's crypto and AI czar, then went on to suggest that AI companies have injected too much fear into the conversation about what this new tech could potentially do to the world. Sacks said he understood the fear of regular people, especially conservatives, but that buying stakes in AI companies was not the solution. "Dario [Amodei] and Sam [Altman] have begun to walk back their claims of massive job loss, but the damage to public trust is done, and now the chickens are coming home to roost. I could almost support the Sanders proposal as a stupidity tax," wrote Sacks. On Friday, the White House announced Trump would be trying to speed up adoption of AI models by the U.S. government when it comes to national security. But the Trump regime emphasized it would not be engaging in any of the practices many people are concerned about. Specifically, the White House said it would not be engaging in "unauthorized or unlawful surveillance activities." Obviously, that's a caveat which means nothing, given the fact that blank-check FISA court renewals make just about any kind of surveillance on Americans permissible, especially under the Trump White House interpretation of "legal." But they're clearly aware of just how freaked out everyone is. Earlier this year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth went to war with Anthropic over its refusal to drop guardrails that would allow Claude to be used for fully autonomous weapons and domestic surveillance. And it's not a great sign when those two things are a deal-breaker for the government. It certainly suggests the U.S. military wants to use AI for fully autonomous weapons and domestic surveillance. Oddly enough, Hegseth seems to be losing his war against Anthropic, as Reuters reported this week that the dispute between the government and the AI company "showing signs of easing." And if Trump decides to take a stake in AI -- potentially seeing it as a way to distribute stimulus checks before the midterm elections -- that would mean Anthropic simply isn't someone the Pentagon can be at war with anymore. Suddenly, every AI company is an integral part of the government. It remains to be seen whether Trump actually pulls the trigger on taking a stake in the AI companies, and if he does, there's no telling which companies may resist. But it seems like Hegseth and Sacks are losing their respective battles to even greater forces: Trump's fickle loyalty and his desire to control every industry in America while handing out free money to his supporters.

Trump eyes public stake in $850bn OpenAI as Sanders wants 50%

Trump says he will meet AI companies next week on a "partnership" plan to give Americans an equity stake. Altman first pitched the idea in early 2025. Sanders wants 50%. Critics warn government ownership would undermine AI regulation. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he will likely meet with AI companies at the White House next week to discuss what he called a federal government "partnership" that would let the American public profit from the industry's success. "There are concepts where pieces could be given to the American public, where the American public essentially becomes a partner with the companies," Trump said, adding that the programme could include sending company dividends to Americans. The idea is not new. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman first pitched the concept of government stakes in major AI firms to the Trump administration in early 2025, and has raised it again in recent weeks. But the president's public endorsement, combined with a parallel and far more aggressive proposal from Senator Bernie Sanders, has thrust the question of who owns AI's economic upside into the centre of Washington's fractured AI policy debate. Two proposals, very different teeth Altman's version is voluntary. OpenAI's April policy document proposed a "Public Wealth Fund" that would give every citizen a stake in AI-driven economic growth. Under this framing, OpenAI could donate equity to the government to seed the fund. The pitch positions the company as a willing participant, not a target. Sanders' version is not voluntary. The senator announced plans for the AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, which would impose a one-time 50% tax on the stock of the largest AI companies, paid in shares rather than cash. The government would manage the resulting fund, use its voting shares to secure board representation, and block decisions it deems harmful. The bill targets firms like OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI. The legislation is widely considered unlikely to pass, but it has shifted the boundaries of what Washington is willing to discuss. The gap between the two proposals is vast. Altman is offering a gift. Sanders is proposing a seizure. Trump appears to be somewhere in the middle, publicly warming to the concept without committing to either version's mechanics. The conflict-of-interest problem The most pointed criticism of any government equity arrangement came from Nat Purser of the advocacy group Public Knowledge, who cautioned against any setup that makes the government less inclined to impose or enforce safety regulations because doing so might diminish the value of its own holdings. The concern is not abstract. Three days before Trump's profit-sharing comments, he signed an executive order asking AI companies to voluntarily submit frontier models for government testing up to 30 days before public release. The word "voluntarily" is doing a lot of work in that sentence. If the government holds equity in the companies it is supposed to regulate, the incentive to keep that testing voluntary, rather than mandatory, becomes even stronger. Anthropic has said it is not involved in discussions with the administration about granting equity to the government. No other company has publicly confirmed participation. Precedent, but not quite The Trump administration has already taken equity positions in Intel, IBM, and several quantum and critical minerals companies during the president's second term. But those stakes came with specific industrial policy objectives, typically tied to subsidies or procurement contracts. An AI equity programme would be structurally different: it would aim to redistribute wealth from an entire category of companies to the general public, not to secure supply chains. The legal question nobody has answered The most fundamental obstacle is mechanical. How would a private AI company transfer equity to the federal government? OpenAI, currently valued at more than $850 billion by private investors, is restructuring from a non-profit into a for-profit entity and preparing for an IPO as soon as this year. It closed a record-breaking funding round in March co-led by MGX, backed by Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund. Anthropic has filed confidentially for an IPO. xAI merged into SpaceX, which is about to conduct the largest IPO in history. Each has a different corporate structure, different investor base, and different fiduciary obligations. A one-size-fits-all equity transfer mechanism does not exist. Sanders' bill would use the tax code, but a 50% stock seizure raises obvious constitutional questions. Altman's voluntary donation model avoids those, but depends entirely on companies choosing to participate, which means the fund would be as large or as small as the industry decides. The California approach, announced by Governor Gavin Newsom in a separate executive order last month, takes a different path entirely. Newsom is exploring mandatory equity grants for workers displaced by AI, a state-level capital pool funded by taxes on AI productivity gains, and voluntary profit-sharing programmes incentivised by tax breaks. None of these require the federal government to hold shares directly. What happens next Trump said the meeting with AI companies will happen "next week." No formal agenda has been announced. The planning remains at the discussion stage, with no companies confirmed and no legal framework in place. The broader context is a country that has spent 18 months unable to agree on basic AI safety rules, let alone ownership structures. The EU has its AI Act. The US has a stalled executive order, a voluntary testing regime, and now two competing proposals to give the public a cut of the profits. Whether any of it results in Americans actually receiving dividends from AI companies, or whether the conversation simply makes the companies look generous while changing nothing, will depend on details that nobody has written yet.

OpenAI has the tools to lay a Washington snare

NEW YORK, June 9 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Artificial intelligence is creating wealth for Silicon Valley and anxiety elsewhere. OpenAI boss Sam Altman wants to bridge the gap by giving Americans a stake in the boom. The solution is both timely and worrying. Spreading the wealth could ease brewing AI backlash. Yet doing so by handing a stake directly to the White House would set up a dangerous codependency between AI labs and the government meant to regulate them. Altman has repeatedly raised the idea of Washington taking a stake in AI leaders. On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump said that he may meet the industry's leading lights to discuss the plan. The political angle is easy to grasp. Voters are increasingly wary of artificial intelligence, and particularly the ⁠data centers vital to its growth. Only 26% of Americans support increased server-farm construction, pollster Public Trust found, opens new tab in June. With the likes of Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei warning, opens new tab starkly about potential white-collar job losses, it's little wonder that the public sees a future where technology companies get richer as average workers' lives become more precarious. In April, a Gallup poll showed, opens new tab just 18% of Americans aged 14 to 29 felt hopeful about AI. Meta Platforms (META.O), opens new tab and other tech giants have shown little sentimentality when cutting staff. In an April white paper, OpenAI proposed, opens new tab a public wealth fund, giving citizens a direct stake in AI-driven growth. A publicly held interest in the industry could reap literal dividends for taxpayers or be leveraged to fund investment. The question is where this stake comes from. After all, forcing AI companies ⁠to issue new shares would dilute existing investors, like Altman's backers Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab and SoftBank (9984.T), opens new tab. Conveniently, OpenAI's recent corporate reshuffle left a huge pool of value in its nonprofit arm, which now holds 26% of the core for-profit company. Handing some of that to the public would be a clever peace offering. At OpenAI's most recent valuation of $852 billion, the stake would be worth about $222 billion. Donating even part of it would give Washington ⁠something tangible to show voters while insulating private backers. This would put unusual power in the hands of the White House if it happens outside of an existing authority legislated by Congress. And while it may buy goodwill, it doesn't solve the harder problem of regulating AI and its ⁠potential existential risks. Instead, it offers a financial incentive to the government to simply promote OpenAI's interests. In the long run, the public might yet sour on a bargain that substitutes Altman's priorities for theirs. Follow Karen Kwok on LinkedIn, opens new tab and X, opens new tab. Context News* U.S. President Donald Trump told ⁠reporters on June 5 that his team is looking into the idea of AI companies giving the American public a stake in their firms, adding that he planned to host a meeting with AI executives. * In an April white paper, leading model-maker OpenAI proposed a "public wealth fund" holding assets that "capture growth" in AI companies. Editing by Jonathan Guilford; Production by Maya Nandhini * Suggested Topics: * Breakingviews Breakingviews Reuters Breakingviews is the world's leading source of agenda-setting financial insight. As the Reuters brand for financial commentary, we dissect the big business and economic stories as they break around the world every day. A global team of about 30 correspondents in New York, London, Hong Kong and other major cities provides expert analysis in real time. Sign up for a free trial of our full service at https://www.breakingviews.com/trial and follow us on X @Breakingviews and at www.breakingviews.com. All opinions expressed are those of the authors. Karen Kwok Thomson Reuters Karen is a columnist based in New York focusing on global technology and venture capital sectors, writing stories about artificial intelligence, fintech, and semiconductor companies. She used to cover deals in the Middle East region and global metal mining sector. Prior to Breakingviews, she was a European gas and power reporter at S&P Global Platts in London and covered funds and equities at Morningstar UK. Karen also briefly worked at Bloomberg. Born and raised in Hong Kong, she is fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese.

Trump says he's considering government stake in top AI companies

President Donald Trump, seen aboard Air Force One on Friday. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images) President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is considering taking a government stake in leading artificial intelligence companies. The suggestion follows previous deals in which the Trump administration has taken stakes in major companies including chipmaker Intel, breaching traditions that previously protected American firms from government intervention. Leaders of "all the big" AI companies are coming to the White House as early as next week to discuss the idea of the government taking stakes in the firms, Trump told reporters in remarks on Air Force One. "It almost becomes a partnership with the American public," he said. Trump added that "the American people can benefit from the success of AI, and by that, they're going to like it better." Trump's comments come as the private companies SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI -- three of the leading players in the industry -- prepare to offer their stock for sale to the public, likely creating new trillion-dollar companies in coming months. Some tech industry and political leaders see the potential for widespread economic disruption if AI unleashes growth but also pushes people out of work as their jobs are replaced by the new breed of computers. Supporters of the government taking a stake in the industry see it as a way to share the proceeds of its growth, while softening the economic consequences for a broad swath of the public. Most Americans are gloomy about the future impact of AI, according to recent surveys. More than 70 percent of American adults believe AI is moving too fast and 51 percent are more pessimistic than optimistic about the technology's long-term effect on society, according to a May poll from YouGov and the Economist. OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman has been discussing the idea with Trump and other White House officials since early in his second term, according to a person familiar with the outreach. Altman's vision is for his company to donate some portion of itself to a government fund, with other AI firms joining the effort, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private deliberations. The discussions were first reported by the news site NOTUS. OpenAI, Anthropic, SpaceX and Google -- which is seen as the leading public AI company -- did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Trump's proposal or the meeting. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) on Monday outlined his own proposal for the U.S. government to take significant stakes in leading AI companies, through a new American sovereign wealth fund, and also be represented on the boards of the firms. Sanders discussed his version of the idea with Altman during a meeting on Capitol Hill this week. "The American people understand that the economic system is rigged, the rich are getting richer, working people are going nowhere in a hurry," Sanders said in an interview with The Washington Post. "So I think there's a lot of anxiety all over this country, and AI simply adds to it. People feel powerless." Trump has embraced the tech industry's ambitions for AI in his second term. Altman first discussed the government taking a stake in his company with the president last year, after the CEO had spent time raising funds in the Middle East and Asia, where he met with sovereign wealth funds in several nations, according to another person familiar with the deliberations at the time. OpenAI executives became interested in the structure of the funds and the idea of governments taking a stake in such consequential technology, the person said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. Since then, the idea of taxing the wealth of AI companies or finding some other way for the public to share in their growth has gained traction in Washington as fears have mounted over the technology's potential to put large numbers of people out of work. In April, OpenAI outlined a proposal for a "Public Wealth Fund," saying it would allow people who did not have money to invest in the stock market to reap a financial benefit from the industry's success. Taking direct stakes in AI companies could raise new questions about the relationship between the federal government and some of the most powerful companies in the U.S. economy. Some leading tech figures who backed Trump in the 2024 presidential race cited their concern at President Joe Biden's attempts to regulate and gather information from AI companies. Trump signed an executive order this week establishing a way for tech firms to voluntarily give the federal government early access to powerful AI systems, to allow time to prepare for security risks. David Sacks, a tech investor and the former White House AI czar, panned Sanders's vision of public stakes in AI companies in a social media post Friday. The investor said government ownership of the industry would lead to Chinese-style censorship and surveillance. "Nationalization of AI will accelerate the corporate-government fusion we're already sliding toward," he wrote. Sacks added a warning for those on the political right considering more government involvement in AI to help manage the technology's impacts. "Conservatives are right to fear where this is all headed but ought to think more carefully about how regulations they are flirting with now ... are widely celebrated among those with a long history of lust for Big Government," he wrote. Elizabeth Dwoskin contributed to this report.

US officials have discussed taking government stakes in AI companies

A NOTUS report says senior officials held early talks with AI firms about the government acquiring shares, an idea Sam Altman pitched to Trump in 2025. The idea is unusual enough that it took a moment to register: the United States government, owning a slice of the companies building frontier AI. According to a report by NOTUS, senior US officials have held preliminary discussions with major AI companies about exactly that, the federal government acquiring shares in the firms at the centre of the technology it is also trying to regulate. The thread runs through OpenAI. Sam Altman, the company's chief executive, who has spent recent weeks in Washington urging Congress to fund AI testing rather than require model approvals, has discussed the stake concept with senior Trump administration officials periodically since the president's second term began, NOTUS reported, having first pitched it directly to Donald Trump in early 2025 and raised it again with officials in recent weeks. The discussions, per the report, have centred on firms voluntarily ceding shares to the government rather than the government buying in. What the government would do with the returns is part of the pitch. One option discussed is directing the proceeds to public purposes, including a dividend paid to all American households, a framing that turns government ownership of AI into a mechanism for distributing the technology's gains directly to citizens. It is a politically potent idea at a moment when, by the polling NOTUS cites, 55% of Americans think AI will do more harm than good in their daily lives, and when OpenAI's own corporate structure is already under a microscope through the Musk v. Altman trial over its nonprofit-to-profit conversion. That public scepticism is the context the companies are reacting to. Tech firms are looking for ways to win over Americans wary of AI, and a structure that hands the public a stake, literal or financial, in the upside is one answer to the charge that the gains are flowing to a narrow few. Voluntarily ceding shares reads, in that light, as much as reputation management as fiscal policy. The objection is structural and immediate. A government that owns shares in a company it also regulates is both shareholder and referee, a conflict critics quoted in the report flagged at once. The incentive to protect the value of a holding sits awkwardly beside the duty to police the company that holds it, and no amount of public-dividend framing fully resolves the tension. The idea also has unlikely company across the political spectrum. Versions of public equity in AI have been floated from the left as well, on the logic that if the technology displaces large numbers of workers, the public should hold a claim on the resulting profits rather than watch them accrue entirely to private shareholders, a concern OpenAI itself has gestured at even as Altman plays down the idea of an AI jobs apocalypse. That a Trump-administration conversation and progressive proposals arrive at a similar mechanism, the state holding a stake on the public's behalf, is a measure of how unsettled the question of who benefits from AI has become. For now this is reporting about conversations, not a policy or a deal. The talks are described as preliminary, the share transfers as hypothetical and voluntary, the dividend as one idea among several. But the fact that the conversation is happening at all marks how far the relationship between the US government and the AI industry has shifted, from arms-length regulation towards something that, if it ever materialised, would make the state a part-owner of the thing it is meant to oversee.

Trump: U.S. stake in AI giants "could be a beautiful thing"

President Trump surprised tech CEOs by suddenly pushing the idea of the U.S. taking a small ownership stake in AI giants, so the American people share in the upside of what will be trillion-dollar companies. * "There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One yesterday. "It's like you make them [partners] in this revolution. It would be a beautiful thing. ... It would make 'em rich." Why it matters: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has pushed this idea with the Trump administration over the past year. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) reignited the conversation this week when he proposed giving the public a "direct ownership stake" in top AI companies via a one-time 50% tax, paid in stock.

Automatic for the people? AI as public utility

LONDON, June 9 (Reuters) - Left-leaning U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and Republican President Donald Trump have found surprising common ground: the U.S. government should take stakes in AI companies so the public can share in the rewards. With nationalization back in vogue, turning AI firms into quasi-utilities may no longer be a pipe dream. As investors get giddy about upcoming public share sales by the AI boom's leading names, OpenAI and Anthropic, there's more than a little anxiety about how government copes with potentially seismic changes to the economy and society from rapid automation of both white- and blue-collar jobs. In a New York Times op-ed last Monday, Sanders, opens new tab advocated the government taking 50% stakes in the big AI companies. The Vermont independent senator said he plans to introduce legislation creating a sovereign wealth fund to hold those stakes. He said the fund would give the public a role in determining the future of the technology and secure some of the trillions of dollars of profits for the workers most affected by it. In times past, that idea might have ended up as a trial balloon by a firebrand politician, calculated to excite debate and little else as private enterprise and free-market thinking drowned it out. Except Trump, and possibly even the bosses of one of the AI companies, may be thinking along the same lines. Digital news outlet NOTUS reported last Thursday that senior U.S. officials held preliminary discussions with major AI companies about the government possibly buying shares in their firms. The talks, which included OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, centered on having the ⁠firms voluntarily cede shares to the government. Returns on investment could then be directed to public purposes and possibly even dividends to American households, the report said. By Friday, Trump seemed on board with that plan. "There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public," he told reporters aboard Air Force One. "We'll look into that." On the specifics of the Sanders idea, he was also quoted as saying he has been considering government investment in AI companies for over a year. "Where economics are concerned, we (Trump and Sanders) have things that aren't that far apart." And if you thought that was all feel-good bluster, the tactic is already a reality for an administration pushing an unusually large role in the corporate sector. It took a 10% stake in U.S. chipmaker Intel (INTC.O), opens new tab last year, stakes in a handful of rare-earth firms and then quantum computing companies, including IBM (IBM.N), opens new tab, only last month. Whether any of this fits into Trump's executive order last year on creating a sovereign fund to house these investments is not yet clear. But the prospect of AI stakes is far from fanciful now. FOURTH WAVE OF NATIONALIZATION Whether that should encourage prospective shareholders or spook them is an open question. The government stake has not done Intel's stock any harm. Since the 10% stake was taken last August, Intel has quintupled in value, transforming Washington's $10 billion investment into one worth $50 billion. Some may argue that a government stake makes these companies too big to fail and underscores their success. Others will see the opposite risk: ⁠that state ownership deters private capital, politicizes AI governance and leaves taxpayers exposed if public investments underperform. But questions remain about how a government shareholder might exert its influence, either as a significant minority investor or by expanding its stake over time to wield greater control. Only last month, Trump told Fortune magazine that he "should have asked for more" from Intel. The Sanders plan sets an ambition. If AI and quantum computing firms are considered vital to national economic and military security, might they not eventually be seen as state-run utilities? As both Sanders and OpenAI's Altman insist, AI is a summation of collective human experience. "Artificial intelligence was not created out of thin air. The data and language used by generative AI tools didn't just pop into Sam Altman's head or Elon Musk's imagination," wrote Sanders. "AI is built on our collective intelligence: our books, songs, artwork, journalism, ⁠computer code, scientific research, videos, conversations, images and ideas spanning generations." But in a post-pandemic world of greater rivalry, supply chain anxieties, trade tensions and national security concerns, government control of strategic industries has become much more compelling. AI and quantum computing are increasingly being viewed as critical national resources that need protection and investment. Cornell Professor Nicholas Mulder, opens new tabargues we are in the fourth wave of nationalizations in a century. This wave has seen governments take half a trillion dollars in assets worldwide since 2020 - the first such surge since the 1970s. Beyond America's borders, the push for governments ⁠to take stakes in fast-moving tech firms may turn panicky, forcing catch-up investment in regional tech ecosystems that would not be necessary in more globalized times. Former IMF chief economist Ken Rogoff, opens new tab wrote last week that governments that fail to secure a place in the AI supply chain may find themselves confronting mass job displacement without the tax revenues or state capacity needed to contain the social and political fallout. "No one really knows what such a world would look like, let alone how to keep it from ⁠tearing itself apart," he warned. That uncertainty may be enough to push governments from regulating AI to owning a piece of it. (The opinions expressed here are those of Mike Dolan, a columnist for Reuters.) Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI),, opens new tab your essential new source for global financial commentary. Follow ROI on LinkedIn,, opens new tab and X., opens new tab And listen to the Morning Bid daily podcast on Apple, opens new tab, Spotify, opens new tab, or the Reuters app, opens new tab. Subscribe to hear Reuters journalists discuss the biggest news in markets and finance seven days a week. by Mike Dolan; Editing by Marguerita Choy Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab * Suggested Topics: * ROI: Reuters Open Interest * Regulatory Oversight Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias. Mike Dolan Thomson Reuters Mike Dolan is Reuters Editor-at-Large for Finance & Markets and a regular columnist. He has worked as a correspondent, editor and columnist at Reuters for the past 30 years - specializing in global economics and policy and financial markets across G7 and emerging economies. Mike is based in London but has also worked in Washington DC and in Sarajevo and has covered news events from dozens of cities across the world. A graduate in economics and politics from Trinity College Dublin, Mike previously worked with Bloomberg and Euromoney and received Reuters awards for his work during the financial crisis in 2007/2008 and on Frontier Markets in 2010.

Former AI czar calls Sanders' proposal for government equity a 'stupidity tax' and warns against nationalization as Trump mulls public stakes | Fortune

The Trump administration's former AI czar sounded the alarm on giving the federal government equity stakes in top AI companies, while his former boss hinted favorably at the idea. In an X post on Friday, David Sacks said he's not a fan of Sen. Bernie Sanders' bill that would establish 50% government ownership in AI companies. But he acknowledged that the proposal resonates with people, even conservatives, and blamed AI CEOs who have hyped up the technology's enormous risks without explaining its potential benefits. That's after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei have both withdrawn their earlier AI jobs apocalypse prophecies as they eye blockbuster IPOs later this year. "Dario and Sam have begun to walk back their claims of massive job loss, but the damage to public trust is done, and now the chickens are coming home to roost," Sacks wrote. "I could almost support the Sanders proposal as a stupidity tax." But he stopped short of backing it and warned that nationalization of AI will accelerate the "corporate-government fusion" that's already in progress. Sacks added that conservatives are right to fear a central bank digital currency but should be even more concerned about a central government AI, calling it "a system with even more totalistic power over information, decision-making, and human behavior." He predicted AI could be weaponized against conservatives, saying the consequences would be "Orwellian" and much worse than limits placed on social media during COVID. "AI won't just moderate posts; it will curate reality -- with the ability to rewrite history, enforce ideological conformity, influence policy at scale, mass surveil Americans, and condition the benefits of the many systems it controls on approved behavior," Sacks said. "America won't win the AI race if we beat China but end up with a CCP-style social credit system in the U.S. -- and that is the danger as the government becomes more deeply involved in AI development and assumes direct ownership and control." But later on Friday, President Donald Trump said he expects to meet with AI companies in the coming week to discuss a federal "partnership" that would benefit the American people. Such a partnership could entail distributing company dividends to Americans -- similar to the way stockholders receive payouts -- to help overcome public fears about AI-related economic disruption. "There's a concept out there, there's so much money and it's so big that there are concepts where pieces could be given to the American public, where the American public essentially becomes a partner with the companies," Trump told reporters. "I have spoken to all of them." He added, "We're talking about it where the American people can benefit from the success of AI. And by doing that, they're going to like it better." In fact, senior U.S. officials have already had preliminary discussions with AI executives, including Altman, about the federal government potentially acquiring some shares, sources told NOTUS on Thursday. Altman first pitched the idea to Trump in early 2025 and discussed it with senior administration officials in recent weeks, the report said. Discussions have centered on AI firms voluntarily handing over shares to the government, with returns funneled to public purposes, such as dividends to all American households, according to NOTUS. For his part, Sanders wrote in a New York Times op-ed on Monday that his bill would not only share financial gains with the public, it would allow the federal government to block decisions that could harm Americans and empower it to push for policies that help them. "If the big AI companies continue to grow as rapidly as many analysts expect, then the value of the sovereign wealth fund will grow as well -- and the benefits to the American people will grow along with it," he added.

US government could take stakes in major AI companies

US officials are weighing a proposal that could see the federal government take stakes in leading artificial intelligence providers. The discussions were first reported by news outlet NOTUS on Thursday. According to Politico, President Donald Trump confirmed the report today during a press briefing aboard Air Force One. Trump stated that he will likely meet with representatives of "all the big" AI developers at the White House next week. The report didn't specify the companies that could be involved in the initiative. OpenAI Group PBC Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman visited Washington, DC earlier this week to meet with administration officials. Dario Amodei, his counterpart at Anthropic PBC, held discussions at the White House in April. "There's a concept out there, there's so much money and it's so big that there are concepts where pieces could be given to the American public, where the American public essentially becomes a partner with the companies," Trump said today. The size of the stakes that the government would take in the participating AI companies is unclear. However, NOTUS reported that the returns provided by the investment could be used to issue a dividend to American households. The publication's sources added that the details of the initiative are still in flux. CNBC reported today that White House officials have been discussing the idea with Sam Altman for over a year. Under the proposed plan, OpenAI would donate equity to the government. The shares would reportedly be used to finance an investment vehicle that would enable Americans to share in the profits of AI companies. The fund could reportedly be similar to the "Public Wealth Fund" that OpenAI proposed in a recent policy paper. According to the document, the investment vehicle would back frontier model developers and companies that are using AI in their business operations. OpenAI stated that the fund's returns could be distributed to US households. Earlier this week, Senator Bernie Sanders proposed that the government take a 50% stake in AI providers such as OpenAI and Anthropic. Trump addressed the idea today by stating that "as far as economics is concerned, we have certain things that aren't that far apart. People are surprised." The development comes a few weeks after the U.S. Commerce Department agreed to issue $2.013 billion in grants to IBM Corp., GlobalFoundries Inc. and seven other players in the quantum computing market. The US government will receive shares in exchange for the funds. The equity that GlobalFoundries, a publicly traded chip manufacturer, plans to provide reportedly amounts to a 1% stake.

Trump says his team will 'look into' US taking stake in AI companies

0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Trump says his team will 'look into' US taking stakes in AI firms 00:00 00:00 00:00 WASHINGTON, June 5 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday that his team is looking into the idea of AI companies giving the American public a stake in their firms, adding that he planned to host a meeting with AI executives as soon as next week. "There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public," he told reporters aboard Air Force One. "We'll look into that." Digital news outlet NOTUS reported on Thursday that senior U.S. officials held preliminary discussions with AI companies about the potential for the ⁠government to buy some shares in their firms. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on details of the planned meeting, or whether topics would include the possibility of the U.S. government taking stakes in the firms. AI giants Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Facebook and SpaceX did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Trump administration has been struggling to decide how tightly to regulate AI. The White House abruptly cancelled a signing ceremony for an AI executive order that had been slated for May 21. Other media outlets reported the cancellation came after the ⁠tech industry pushed back against elements of the directive. At the time, Trump said he did not like certain aspects of the executive order and did not want to take any steps that might undermine the U.S. in its AI competition with China. But earlier this week, Trump signed a revamped version of the ⁠order that asked leading AI developers to voluntarily submit their most capable models for government cybersecurity tests before releasing them to the public. Fears about AI are mounting, fuelled by Anthropic's release of its powerful Mythos tool. In the wrong hands, experts ⁠say, Mythos could dramatically accelerate sophisticated cyberattacks, particularly in sectors such as banking that rely on complex, interconnected and often decades-old technology systems. The Trump administration has taken an unusually ⁠large role in the U.S. corporate sector, taking stakes in U.S. chipmaker Intel and a handful of rare earth and quantum companies. Reporting by Nandita Bose and Humeyra Pamuk, Courtney Rozen and Alexandra Alper Editing by David Ljunggren, Chizu Nomiyama and Nia Williams Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Trump Says He Thinks AI Companies Will Agree to 'Giving Back' to the Public

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) - U.S. President ⁠Donald ⁠Trump said on ⁠Wednesday that he expects top artificial intelligence companies to agree to "giving back" to the public, an apparent reference to a possible government stake in the firms. "I'm going ⁠to ⁠have meetings with the top 12 or 15 executives very shortly, and we're talking about giving back something to the public, and if we do that, the public will become very rich," Trump told reporters ⁠in the ⁠White House's Oval ⁠Office. "I think they'll do that, and I think it'll make it very popular." Support ⁠is growing in Washington for a potential financial partnership between the federal government and the AI industry, as tech giants OpenAI and Anthropic prepare ⁠for blockbuster initial public offerings. OpenAI is targeting a valuation ⁠of up to $1 trillion, Reuters previously reported. An agreement to give the U.S. government equity stakes could have a massive impact on the U.S. government's finances. Concern is also growing among Americans about the impact of AI on their daily lives. Half of Americans fear that the rise ⁠of AI could put them or someone in their household out of work, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday. (Reporting by Bo Erickson and Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Mark Porter)

Trump explores federal government acquiring shares in AI companies

President Trump signed an executive order creating a voluntary federal review process for advanced artificial intelligence models. WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump said he's exploring having the federal government acquire shares in artificial intelligence companies, likening the concept to a "partnership with the American people." Trump said he will meet with executives of the nation's largest AI companies as early as next week to discuss the government potentially owning equity stake in "pieces" of their firms. "There are concepts where pieces could be given to the American public, where the American public essentially becomes a partner with the companies," Trump told reporters on June 5 aboard Air Force One. "I have spoken to all of them," he said, referring to the AI companies. "There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public, and we'll look into that. We are looking." Trump's remarks came after NOTUS reported that senior Trump administration officials have discussed the possible acquisition of shares of AI firms with tech executives including Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, who first pitched the idea to Trump in early 2025. NOTUS, which cited three unnamed sources familiar with the talks, said discussions have involved firms voluntarily ceding the shares to the government, with returns on the investments going to public purposes, including a potential dividend payment to American households. How the government could legally compel the companies to turn over equity to the government is not clear. The size of the government's equity is also unclear. "We're talking about it, where the American people could benefit from the success of AI," Trump said. "And by doing that, they're going to like it better." The rapid expansion of AI ‒ and its effects on the labor market and humanity itself ‒ has become a growing anxiety among Americans and people across the world. Trump this week signed an executive order that asks AI developers to voluntarily submit their models to the federal government to review for potential cybersecurity risks. In his second term, Trump has broken sharply with the historically hands-off approach of Republicans on the government's role with private enterprise in industries he's deemed critical for the country. Under Trump, the federal government acquired a 10% share in semiconductor giant Intel, shares in multiple companies that produce metals and minerals, and a so-called "golden share" in U.S. Steel Corporation that gives the government say over certain decision-making. With the government owning equity in AI, Trump would be embracing a concept also backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, a Democratic socialist ‒ albeit at a scale probably smaller than the senator has suggested. Sanders said he intends to introduce legislation soon that would seek to give the government 50% ownership of the nation's largest AI companies ‒ enough to effectively give the government decision-making control. His legislation would impose a one-time 50% tax on the companies' stocks, Sanders wrote in a June 1 New York Times op-ed. Trump, asked about Sanders's plan, told reporters, "I've been talking about it for the past year," adding that some voters who backed Sanders in the 2016 Democratic primary supported him in the general election. "As far as economics is concerned, we have some things that aren't that far apart," Trump said. Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.

US officials eye government stakes in AI companies, NOTUS reports

June 4 (Reuters) - Senior U.S. officials held preliminary discussions with major AI companies about the potential for the government to buy some shares in their firms, digital news outlet NOTUS reported, opens new tab on Thursday, citing three people familiar with the matter. While the planning is ongoing and details are in flux, discussions have centered on having the firms voluntarily cede the shares to the government, the report said. The returns on the investment could then be directed to public purposes, such as distributing a dividend payment to all American households, the report said. Reuters could ⁠not immediately confirm the report. The report comes as OpenAI and Anthropic prepare for blockbuster initial public offerings. OpenAI is preparing to confidentially file for an IPO, Reuters previously reported, while Anthropic, which makes Claude, confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO on Monday. Reporting by Gnaneshwar Rajan in Bengaluru and Mrinmay Dey in Mexico City; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Trump says he thinks AI companies will agree to 'giving back' to the public

President Trump plans to meet with top AI executives soon. He expects them to agree to 'give back' to the public. This could involve the government taking stakes in these companies. Such an agreement could significantly benefit the U.S. government's finances. Many Americans worry about AI's impact on jobs. US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he expects top artificial intelligence companies to agree to "giving back" to the public, an ⁠apparent reference ⁠to a possible government stake in the firms. "I'm going to have meetings with the top 12 or 15 executives very shortly, and we're talking about giving back something to the public, and if we do that, the public will become very rich," ⁠Trump told reporters in the White House's Oval Office. "I think they'll do that, and I ⁠think it'll make it very popular." Concern is growing among Americans about AI negatively impacting their lives. Half of Americans fear that the rise of AI could put them or someone in their household out of work, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday. AI companies Anthropic, OpenAI, Google and Meta did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A Trump spokesperson did not immediately ⁠respond to a request for more details about the president meeting with AI executives. OpenAI is targeting a valuation of up to $1 trillion, Reuters previously reported. An agreement to give the US government equity stakes could have a massive impact on the US government's finances.

Donald Trump says his team will 'look into' US taking stake in AI companies

Digital news outlet NOTUS reported on Thursday that senior U.S. officials held preliminary discussions with AI companies about the potential for the government to buy some shares in their firms. US President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday that his team is looking into the idea of AI companies giving the American public a stake in their firms, adding that he planned to host a meeting with AI executives as soon as next week. "There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public," he ⁠told reporters ⁠aboard Air Force One. "We'll look into that." Digital news outlet NOTUS reported on Thursday that senior U.S. officials held preliminary discussions with AI companies about the potential for the government to buy some shares in their firms. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on details of theplanned meeting, or whether topics would include the possibility of the U.S. government taking stakes in the firms. AI ⁠giants Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Facebook and SpaceX did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Trump administration has been struggling to decide how tightly to ⁠regulate AI. The White House abruptly cancelled a signing ceremony for an AI executive order that had been slated for May 21. Other media outlets reported the cancellation came after the tech industry pushed back against elements of the directive. At the time, Trump said he did not like certain aspects of the executive order and did not want to take any steps that might undermine the U.S. in its AI competition with China. But earlier this week, Trump signed a revamped version of the order that asked leading AI developers to voluntarily submit their most capable models for government cybersecurity tests before releasing ⁠them to the public. Fears about AI are mounting, fuelled by Anthropic's release of its powerful Mythostool. In the wrong hands, experts say, Mythos coulddramatically accelerate sophisticated cyberattacks, particularly in sectors such as banking that rely on complex, interconnected and often decades-old technology systems. The Trump administration has taken an unusually large role in the U.S. corporate sector, taking stakes in U.S. chipmaker Intel and a handful of rare earth and quantum companies.

President Trump Seeks Govt. Stake in the AI Pie to Expand Ownership

By the looks of it, such a move would turn criticism of his AI policies into support if he can promise some returns to the general public US President Donald Trump believes that it wouldn't be a bad idea for all AI companies headquartered in the country to give a stake in their enterprises to the general public. He shared this idea with reporters last night, barely days after signing an executive order that allows the government and some private entities to review all future AI models. "There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public. We'll look into that," Trump reported told journalists on board Airforce One. This update was provided by digital news outlet NOTUS, which also said senior US officials had already started discussions with AI companies for the government to buy shares. Incidentally, the name NOTUS is wordplay around similar sounding terms POTUS, which stands for President of the United States and was coined about a 100 years ago by Walter Philips, editor of the Associated Press as a means to reduce costs while using telegrams to wire out the news. It stands for News of the United States. Multiple publications quoted NOTUS for the reportage but also claimed that the White House did not respond to their separate requests for comments on the planned meetings and the topics that could be covered. Must say that Trump's officials do a great job of keeping such comments scarce, given his penchant for reacting or responding to every query. However, what's interesting is that there appears to be no response from the AI giants that include the likes of Google, Facebook, SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI among others. Maybe, they too are recovering from the suddenness of Trump's ideas in such matters. Of course, at the heart of the issue in Trump's mind is the tough decisions that he may need to take while drawing up some regulations - or should we stick to calling it guardrails as AI companies abhor any governmental controls. This was visible in the decision to announce an executive order, then pull back by cancelling a White House ceremony, and suddenly getting it back to the table at a much quieter event with no AI representative in tow. On such occasions, Trump raises the bogey of China's potential hegemony in the field of AI and how steps to rein in US tech giants may undermine Washington's effort to stay ahead of Beijing in this race. When Trump finally signed the executive order, the only change was that the regulation was described as voluntary in nature. With some AI giants like Anthropic now talking about putting a brake on AI development till the time guardrails are up, the Trump regime wants to approach the issue in an even-handed fashion whereby it can use all the tech for spying and create frameworks for future growth. And do it all while hanging the carrot of delivering value to the general American public.

US officials eye government stakes in AI companies, NOTUS reports

While the planning is ongoing and details are in flux, discussions have centered on having the firms voluntarily cede the shares to the ⁠government, the ⁠report said. Senior US officials held preliminary discussions with major AI companies about the potential for the government to buy some shares in their firms, digital news outlet NOTUS reported on Thursday, citing three people familiar with the matter. While the planning is ongoing and details are in flux, discussions have centered on having the firms voluntarily cede the shares to the ⁠government, the ⁠report said. The returns on the investment could then be directed to public purposes, such as distributing a dividend payment to all American households, the report said. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. The report comes as OpenAI and Anthropic prepare for blockbuster initial public offerings. OpenAI is preparing to confidentially file for an IPO, Reuters previously reported, while Anthropic, which makes Claude, confidentially filed ⁠for a US IPO on Monday. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has discussed the idea with government officials since President Donald Trump began his second ⁠term, the report said. Altman first pitched the concept directly to Trump in a conversation in 2025, and has discussed it again with senior administration officials in recent weeks as a way to more broadly distribute the economic benefits of AI to the public, NOTUS said. In 2025, Altman said OpenAI has spoken with the U.S. government about the possibility of federal loan guarantees to spur construction of chip factories in the U.S., but has not sought U.S. government guarantees for building its data centers. Anthropic is not having conversations with the administration about providing ⁠equity to the government, the report said. OpenAI, Anthropic and the White House did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment on the NOTUS report. Trump signed an executive order on Tuesday asking leading AI developers to voluntarily submit their most capable models for government cybersecurity tests before releasing them to the public. The administration said in May it would take $2 billion in equity stakes across nine quantum-computing firms.

US officials discuss taking stakes in AI firms, NOTUS report says By Investing.com

Investing.com-- Senior US officials held early talks with major artificial intelligence companies about the government purchasing shares in their businesses, NOTUS reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The discussions focused on having the companies voluntarily transfer shares to the government, according to the report. Get more breaking news on the biggest AI companies by subscribing to InvestingPro OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has discussed the idea with Senior Trump officials, the NOTUS report said, while rival Anthropic was not involved in conversations over a government equity stake. Returns from the investment could be used for public purposes, including distributing dividend payments to American households, the report said. The talks come as OpenAI and Anthropic prepare for initial public offerings. The ChatGPT maker is preparing to confidentially file for an IPO, while Anthropic, which makes Claude, confidentially filed for a US IPO on Monday.

OpenAI and Washington Weigh Public Equity Stake in the Group

OpenAI and the Trump administration have been in discussions for over a year regarding a potential US government equity stake in the artificial intelligence firm. The talks, initiated by Sam Altman in 2025, recently continued in Washington during meetings focused on AI regulation and technological advancements. Options being explored include a grant of shares to the federal government to seed an investment vehicle inspired by the "Public Wealth Fund" project championed by OpenAI. The fund would aim to invest in long-term assets and redistribute a portion of the returns to American citizens, ensuring they benefit directly from the value created by artificial intelligence. However, no final decision has been reached, and the specific terms remain under discussion. Donald Trump confirmed that these deliberations are underway, mentioning the possibility of "the American people" becoming indirect partners in certain companies within the sector. This initiative is part of a broader strategy to support technologies deemed strategic. Since the start of his second term, the Trump administration has already taken stakes in several companies involved in semiconductors, quantum computing, and critical minerals. Valued at over $850bn, OpenAI is simultaneously preparing for a potentially historic initial public offering. The group also supports the new executive order providing the government with early access to the most advanced AI models prior to their commercial release.