For more than a year, the idea quietly circulated inside Washington. Now it is out in the open: the Trump administration is in talks with OpenAI about the U.S. government taking an equity stake in the company. President Trump confirmed the discussions himself on Air Force One, saying he wants arrangements where the American public essentially becomes a partner with major AI companies.
The concept was first pitched by Sam Altman in early 2025. He proposed that large AI companies voluntarily hand shares over to the federal government, which would then channel returns back to citizens — potentially through direct annual payments to American households. OpenAI formalized the idea in an April policy document, describing a Public Wealth Fund that would invest in diversified, long-term assets and let ordinary people share in AI's financial growth.
Trump has done something like this before. In 2025, the administration took a 10% stake in chipmaker Intel as part of semiconductor manufacturing support talks. After closing that deal, Trump said he hoped to have many more cases like it. The OpenAI negotiations fit the same pattern: strategic government ownership tied to national technology priorities.
The mechanics remain unresolved. No one has clarified how the government would legally acquire shares — voluntary transfer, direct purchase, or something else entirely. Sources cautioned the deal may never materialize. Notably, Anthropic — which is also preparing for a public offering — is reportedly not part of similar conversations.
Senator Bernie Sanders has taken a harder line in parallel: a one-time 50% tax on OpenAI, Anthropic, and xAI, payable in stock rather than cash. Same redistributive goal, different lever. OpenAI is currently valued at over $850 billion, readying for what could be one of the largest IPOs in tech history. Whether the U.S. government ends up at OpenAI's cap table remains an open question. The discussions have already moved AI companies into the same political category as Intel or Boeing — businesses where the federal government claims a stake in the outcome.
