OpenAI discusses giving US govt 5% stake as Washington tightens oversight: report

OpenAI has discussed giving the US government a 5% equity stake in the company as policymakers seek greater oversight of the rapidly expanding sector and explore ways for Americans to benefit financially from the AI boom, according to a Financial Times report.

The proposal, which remains in the conceptual stage, would also encourage other major AI developers, including Anthropic, Google and Meta, to allocate similar stakes to the government, the report said, citing people familiar with the discussions.

It was not immediately clear whether the other companies would support the idea.

At OpenAI's current valuation of about $852 billion (approx. £644.9 billion), a 5% stake might be worth more than $42 billion (approx. £31.8 billion).

Proposal draws inspiration from Alaska's wealth fund

According to the Financial Times, OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman and other company executives have floated the idea of placing the equity into a vehicle modeled after the Alaska Permanent Fund, a state-owned investment fund created from oil revenues that distributes annual dividends to Alaska residents while supporting the state's budget.

The discussions are still at an early stage, and implementing such a structure would likely require an act of Congress.

Altman has reportedly discussed the proposal with President Donald Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

The report added that he has also held recent conversations with Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders.

Sanders has, in recent times, advocated creating a sovereign wealth fund overseen by an independent commission and financed through a one-time 50% tax on shares of the largest AI companies.

AI wealth-sharing gains traction

The discussions come as debate intensifies over whether the economic gains from artificial intelligence should be shared more broadly with the public.

Last month, Trump said his administration was exploring options to give Americans a direct stake in leading AI companies, arguing that ordinary citizens should participate in the sector's future profits.

He described government ownership in AI companies as "a beautiful thing" that would make Americans "partners in this revolution."

OpenAI has previously proposed creating a public wealth fund that would invest in AI companies and distribute returns to citizens, while Anthropic has discussed the concept of a "digital dividend" funded through taxes on the AI industry.

There is also a recent precedent for government equity ownership in strategic technology companies.

In August 2025, the US government acquired a 9.9% stake in Intel at a discounted valuation after the Trump administration intervened to support the struggling chipmaker.

The White House has since pointed to the investment as a successful example of public participation in corporate value creation.

Proposal comes amid growing AI scrutiny

The reported discussions also come as Washington exercises greater influence over the deployment of advanced AI systems.

Last week, OpenAI delayed the full public rollout of GPT-5.6 at the request of the US government.

That followed an earlier directive requiring Anthropic to suspend foreign access to its frontier AI models, Fable 5 and Mythos 5, over national security concerns.

Restrictions on Anthropic's models were lifted earlier this week, but the episode underscored the increasingly close relationship between AI developers and federal regulators.

Against that backdrop, bringing the government onto company cap tables could strengthen ties between AI firms and policymakers while potentially generating broader political support by allowing the public to share in the wealth created by the industry's rapid expansion.

The proposal also comes as OpenAI and Anthropic prepare for eventual US stock market listings, transactions that some investors believe could value each company at more than $1 trillion (approx. £757 billion).

A government-backed ownership structure, if pursued, could become a defining feature of how the next generation of AI companies balances private innovation with public participation.