Trump Hints AI Firms Will Make Public Contribution as 5% OpenAI Stake Proposal Circulates
Updated
Updated · South China Morning Post · Jul 6
Trump Hints AI Firms Will Make Public Contribution as 5% OpenAI Stake Proposal Circulates
3 articles · Updated · South China Morning Post · Jul 6
Summary
Trump said in the Oval Office that U.S. AI companies making “tremendous amounts of money” would make a “contribution to the people of our country,” but gave no details on size, timing or form.
Scott Bessent was drawn into the exchange when Trump said administration discussions were under way and told the Treasury secretary, “You know what I’m talking about,” before declining to elaborate.
Trump paired the idea with a promise of AI “guardrails,” signaling the White House is weighing a bigger government role in an industry it says can deliver “mostly good, and some bad.”
A Financial Times report earlier Monday said Sam Altman had discussed giving the U.S. government a 5% OpenAI stake—worth about $42.6 billion at an $852 billion valuation—adding to speculation over what any public AI payout could look like.