OpenAI proposes giving the US government a 5% stake: FT

[WASHINGTON] OpenAI has begun discussions about giving the US government a 5 per cent stake in the ChatGPT-developer, the Financial Times reported, citing two people familiar with the talks.

OpenAI chief executive officer Sam Altman and other executives proposed that move as part of a broader arrangement under which Washington would hold 5 per cent of each of the leading US AI developers via a government vehicle, the FT reported. That might include Anthropic as well as listed sector leaders Google, Meta Platforms though it is unclear if those other firms would agree with the proposal, the newspaper said.

Altman argued that giving the public a slice of his company was the best way to share upside from the AI boom, the FT said.

The proposal coincides with growing pressure from the Trump administration on major US AI firms. Anthropic suspended its most capable models last month after the government ordered the company to restrict foreign nationals from using the models, citing national security concerns.

This week, Washington removed foreign access restrictions on Anthropic’s Fable 5 model, clearing it for wider distribution after the startup resolved the Trump administration’s safety concerns. BLOOMBERG