OpenAI is dangling an audacious offer to the Trump administration: 5% of the company's equity in exchange for political and regulatory breathing room. The $852 billion AI giant's proposal, reportedly floated by CEO Sam Altman in early discussions, would funnel the stake into a public trust or sovereign wealth fund — similar to Alaska's Permanent Fund — that pays dividends to American citizens.
But OpenAI isn't going it alone. The company wants Google, Meta, and even rival Anthropic to kick in the same proportion of shares. Whether those companies will sign on is anyone's guess.
This comes as the AI industry faces a mounting regulatory storm in Washington. Public concern over massive data center energy use, job displacement, and cybersecurity has put companies like OpenAI under the microscope. Both OpenAI and Anthropic have had their latest frontier models held up for government review, and some Trump advisers are pushing for even tighter controls.
If the equity-share plan ever becomes reality, it would likely require congressional approval and would almost certainly face legal challenges. But it underscores the urgency with which tech giants are trying to cozy up to the administration before going public. There's precedent: after the government bought 10% of Intel, Trump quickly became a supporter.