OpenAI has proposed that the US government acquire a 5% stake in the company in an effort to ease growing political pressures it faces in Washington, according to a report by the Financial Times. Based on the company's latest valuation, this specific percentage corresponds to approximately 42.6 billion dollars, following the completion of the historic funding round in March, which valued OpenAI at 852 billion dollars (post-money valuation).
Sam Altman's proposal to the Trump administration
According to the Financial Times, OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman argued that the US government's participation in the company's equity capital is the best way for citizens to benefit from the economic growth generated by artificial intelligence. The report, citing two individuals familiar with the deliberations, states that Sam Altman floated the idea of a 5% stake during his very first talks with the Donald Trump administration. So far, however, it remains unclear whether the US government intends to move forward with implementing the proposal.
Plan for participation of other AI giants
The proposed model does not exclusively concern OpenAI. According to the same report, the creation of a mechanism via a sovereign wealth fund is being examined, through which other American artificial intelligence companies could yield corresponding stakes to the government. Anthropic, Google, and Meta are mentioned as potential companies that could join this specific scheme, though there is currently no indication that any of them agree with OpenAI's proposal. Neither the White House nor OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Meta immediately responded to requests for comment.
Negotiations began a year ago
The report confirms information previously published by CNBC, according to which discussions regarding a potential US government stake in OpenAI have been ongoing for more than a year. The same sources indicate that Sam Altman first presented the idea directly to the Donald Trump administration in early 2025. In April, OpenAI had also proposed the creation of a "Public Wealth Fund", which would hold assets linked to the growth of AI companies and return a portion of the financial benefits to American citizens.
The precedent with the Trump administration's investments
The Donald Trump administration has already acquired stakes in private companies during his second presidential term, investing in Intel, IBM, as well as businesses operating in the sectors of quantum technology and critical minerals. Specifically, the US government acquired a 10% stake in Intel following an 8.9 billion dollar investment in the company's common stock in August of last year. In May, Donald Trump stated that, in hindsight, he believes the government should have secured an even larger ownership stake in Intel.
"Americans must become partners in the AI revolution"
Donald Trump has repeatedly come out in favor of US government participation in leading artificial intelligence groups, describing such a prospect as "a beautiful thing." As he has stated, such a strategy would allow American citizens to become "partners in this revolution" brought forth by artificial intelligence.
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