OpenAI proposes giving the US government a 5% stake in the company, discussing sovereign wealth fund structure with the Trump Administration

OpenAI is discussing giving the U.S. government a 5% stake in the company as part of a sovereign wealth fund-like structure, the Financial Times reported Thursday citing two unnamed sources. CEO Sam Altman argued giving the public a financial stake is the best way to share the upside of AI, the FT said. An unnamed person familiar with the matter told Axios the proposal is in its very early stages. The arrangement would also involve other U.S. AI firms, with Altman and other OpenAI executives reportedly suggesting these developers allot 5% of their equity to a sovereign wealth fund-like system, though it is unclear if any of them would agree. Altman shared the idea with senior Administration officials since the start of Trump's second term and has ramped up conversations in recent weeks. The FT said Altman was in active talks with Trump, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Any deal would likely require an act of Congress, the sources told the FT. An unnamed source told Reuters the Administration and Anthropic have not discussed government stakes. Trump has previously said the idea is "something very interesting about it where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public."