US Weighs Government Ownership in AI Companies
Senior U.S. officials have held preliminary discussions with leading artificial intelligence companies about the possibility of the federal government acquiring equity stakes in their businesses, as per reports.
According to the report, the discussions remain in the early stages and details are still evolving. One proposal under consideration involves AI companies voluntarily transferring a portion of their shares to the government. The returns generated from these holdings could then be directed toward public initiatives, including the possibility of dividend payments to American households.
The report comes as major AI firms prepare for public market debuts. OpenAI is expected to confidentially file for an initial public offering (IPO), Reuters previously reported, while Anthropic, the developer of the Claude AI model, confidentially submitted paperwork for a U.S. IPO earlier this week.
OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman has reportedly discussed the concept with government officials since President Donald Trump began his second term. According to NOTUS, Altman first raised the idea during a meeting with Trump in 2025 and has since revisited the proposal with senior administration officials as a way to ensure the economic benefits generated by AI are shared more broadly with the public.
Also Read: Samsung to Set Up $1.5 Billion Semiconductor Testing Plant in Vietnam
Altman has also previously stated that OpenAI has explored the possibility of federal loan guarantees to support the construction of semiconductor manufacturing facilities in the United States. However, he noted that the company has not sought government guarantees for building its data-center infrastructure.
Also Read: US Moves to Block Nvidia AI Chip Sales to Chinese Firms Overseas
Anthropic, meanwhile, is not currently engaged in discussions with the administration regarding government ownership stakes, according to the report.
Also Read: India-Oman Trade Agreement Comes into Force
The developments come amid increased government involvement in emerging technologies. On Tuesday, Trump signed an executive order directing leading AI developers to voluntarily submit their most advanced models for government cybersecurity testing before public release. In May, the administration also announced plans to invest $2 billion in equity across nine quantum-computing companies.