OpenAI is reportedly offering the US government a five percent stake in the company

Improving relations with Washington

The proposal comes at a time of increasing pressure from Washington on American technology companies developing artificial intelligence. The Trump administration has increased oversight of the sector, and recently asked OpenAI to delay the public release of the latest GPT-5.6 model due to security checks. Similar pressure was felt by the company Anthropic, which had to temporarily suspend access to its latest model last month after a government order to restrict access to foreign nationals due to national security. Access was later restored after security issues were resolved. Such a share agreement would help the industry to mitigate regulatory risks and ensure political support, especially in view of planned IPOs. In June, President Trump signed an executive order requiring AI companies to share their most advanced models with the government for evaluation before public release, further signaling the intent of tighter scrutiny.

Distribution of wealth through the public fund

Sam Altman and other leaders of OpenAI argue that giving the American public a financial share is the best way to fairly distribute the vast wealth created by the development of artificial intelligence. The idea is that each of America’s biggest AI giants, including Anthropic, Google and Meta, should give five percent of their shares to an investment body like the Alaska Permanent Fund. Riječ is about a sovereign fund that invests oil revenues in stocks and pays dividends to residents of that American state. This would ensure that the economic gains from the AI ​​boom reach all citizens, including those who have not directly invested in the financial markets. Back in April, OpenAI stated in one of its documents that a “public wealth fund” could provide “each citizen with a share in economic growth led by artificial intelligence.” So far, it is not known whether the other mentioned companies will agree with this plan.

Conversations at the highest level

According to reports, Sam Altman is about the proposal moreć spoke with President Donald Trump, as well as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. He also met with Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders, who advocates an even more aggressive approach. Sanders proposed the introduction of a one-time tax of 50 percent on the shares of the largest AI companies, which would finance a sovereign fund worth almost seven trillion dollars.

Trillion dollar stakes and regulatory hurdles

The stakes in these negotiations are huge. OpenAI and Anthropic are preparing to go public on the US stock market, and some investors believe that the value of both companies could exceed a trillion dollars. Based on OpenAI’s $852 billion valuation after its spring funding round, the government’s five percent stake would be worth roughly $42.6 billion. However, the path to such an agreement is not easy. In addition to requiring Congressional approval, implementation could be complicated by OpenAI’s complex ownership structure, which includes a non-profit foundation and a for-profit corporation. However, this is not the first time that the US government has taken over stakes in private companies; the administration previously acquired a ten percent stake in Intel after a significant investment.