OpenAI Discusses Giving US Government 5% Equity Stake, Report Says

OpenAI has reportedly discussed offering the US government a 5% equity stake as part of early talks with the Trump administration, according to a Financial Times report citing people familiar with the matter. The discussions come as Washington increases oversight of advanced AI models and ahead of OpenAI’s potential public listing. CEO Sam Altman reportedly argued that giving the public a financial stake would help share the economic benefits of the AI industry.

IPO Filing Adds Context To Talks

The report follows OpenAI’s confidential S-1 filing for a US initial public offering, positioning the company alongside Anthropic as it prepares for a possible Wall Street debut this year.

Proposal Could Extend To Other AI Firms

The plan reportedly involves several major US AI companies contributing a 5% stake to a public investment vehicle, though it is unclear whether firms like Anthropic, Google or Meta would join. Altman is said to have modeled the idea on Alaska’s Permanent Fund, which distributes oil revenue to residents. He has reportedly discussed the concept with President Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Senator Bernie Sanders, who separately proposed a large tax on top AI companies to fund a public wealth fund.

Washington Tightens AI Model Oversight

The White House is preparing new voluntary standards for frontier AI models, expected to be announced as early as next week, covering security benchmarks and access rules. The administration has previously intervened in AI model rollouts, including requesting a staggered release of OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 and briefly imposing export controls on Anthropic’s latest models.