OpenAI weighed 5% U.S. government stake ahead of IPO

OpenAI held early discussions about offering the U.S. government a 5% equity stake as it moves toward a potential initial public offering. The idea was raised in conversations with senior administration officials during the company’s IPO preparations.

Chief executive Sam Altman presented the proposal in talks with President Donald Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and also discussed the concept with Senator Bernie Sanders. Altman framed the plan as a way for Americans to receive a financial share of gains from rapid advances in artificial intelligence. The proposal drew on the model of Alaska’s Permanent Fund, which invests resource revenue and distributes dividends to residents.

The plan would extend beyond OpenAI, with companies such as Anthropic, Google and Meta among those that could be asked to contribute a 5% share to a public investment vehicle. It remains unclear whether those firms would agree to participate or how any joint vehicle would be structured or governed. Separately, Senator Sanders has proposed a one-time 50% tax on the stock of the largest AI companies to create a large public fund.

OpenAI has confidentially submitted an S-1 registration statement for a U.S. initial public offering. Anthropic has also taken steps toward a possible U.S. IPO. A public listing would subject companies to increased disclosure requirements and regulatory scrutiny.

Federal officials are tightening oversight of advanced AI systems. The White House is finalizing voluntary standards for frontier models that are expected to set security benchmarks, establish review timelines and clarify who may access the most advanced systems domestically and internationally. The administration requested a staggered rollout of OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 and briefly imposed export controls on Anthropic’s latest models over cybersecurity concerns before lifting those restrictions.

Discussions about a public stake and other ways to capture AI-generated value have continued as officials work on oversight measures and AI firms prepare for public markets.