OpenAI in early talks to give 5% stake to U.S. government

OpenAI is in early-stage discussions to transfer a 5% equity stake in the company to the U.S. government, according to a report citing two people familiar with the talks. The proposal would create a mechanism to share financial gains from artificial intelligence with the public. The same report said the plan would require other major U.S. AI developers to contribute similar stakes.

AI companies face increasing regulatory pressure. Last month Anthropic suspended access to one of its newest models after the government ordered limits on use by foreign nationals on national security grounds. This week Anthropic said it had restored customer access after addressing the government’s safety concerns.

Both OpenAI and Anthropic have previously published policy papers suggesting that a public or sovereign wealth fund may eventually be needed to distribute shares to citizens. In April, OpenAI stated that a public wealth fund could give every citizen a stake in AI-driven economic growth.

OpenAI and Anthropic are preparing to list on U.S. stock exchanges, with some investors projecting valuations above $1 trillion for each company.