Trump's AI wealth plan: How Americans could gain stakes in OpenAI, Anthropic, other trillion-dollar tech companies

Published 7 June 2026 · tech

President Trump has outlined a proposal that would grant the American public a direct ownership stake in artificial intelligence companies, arguing that such an arrangement

President Trump has outlined a proposal that would grant the American public a direct ownership stake in artificial intelligence companies, arguing that such an arrangement would transform the relationship between government, citizens and technology firms whilst distributing wealth from trillion-dollar enterprises across the broader population. The proposal, which Trump revealed aboard Air Force One, represents a significant shift in how policymakers are conceptualising the regulation and governance of artificial intelligence development. Rather than traditional regulatory oversight, Trump's framework would position ordinary Americans as financial stakeholders in AI's commercial success. Trump envisions AI ownership creating partnership between public and private sector Trump articulated the rationale behind the proposal in direct terms. "There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public," he told reporters. “It's like you make them partners in this revolution. It would be a beautiful thing.... It would make 'em rich.” The president elaborated further on the scale and scope of what such an arrangement might entail.

"So much money, and it's so big, that there are concepts where pieces could be given to the American public, where the American public essentially becomes a partner, with the companies," Trump said, describing the forthcoming stock offerings by Anthropic, SpaceX and OpenAI as the immediate context for these discussions. How public wealth fund model would function in AI sector The mechanics of implementing such ownership stakes remain under deliberation within the Trump administration. Industry figures have discussed relatively modest percentages, with discussions centring on stakes ranging from one to five per cent. More ambitious proposals, including one recently revived by Senator Bernie Sanders, would extract substantially larger stakes through taxation mechanisms, with Sanders proposing a one-time fifty per cent tax levied in stock rather than cash. Trump indicated openness to exploring various implementation strategies. "We'll look into that. We're talking about it, where the American people can benefit from the success of AI," the president said.

"And by doing that, they're gonna like it better. We're leading China. We're leading everybody in the world with AI, and we want to keep it that way." OpenAI leadership has championed public ownership concept for months The proposal did not emerge spontaneously from the White House. OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman has the concept through multiple channels over the preceding twelve months, first in private conversations with administration officials, subsequently through a proposal framework termed an AI New Deal, and most recently during visits to Capitol Hill where he engaged with both Sanders and bipartisan congressional leadership. OpenAI's published framework, titled "Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age," which circulated in April, included a "Public Wealth Fund" as one of several provocative governance concepts. The corporation's advocacy has provided intellectual scaffolding for what Trump is now considering as executive policy. Public scepticism about AI accelerates industry push for stakes model The driving force behind enthusiasm for public ownership arrangements stems partly from political necessity.