OpenAI’s Sam Altman offers Trump admin a 5% equity worth $43 billion ahead of IPO to rival SpaceX

OpenAI has been discussing with the authorities in Washington DC about giving a 5 percent share of its company to the US Government, which will be valued at around $43 billion based on its estimated value of $852 billion, according to FT.

The idea is tied to Sam Altman’s push to give Americans a direct share of the money that artificial intelligence may create, while OpenAI tries to ease political heat before the highly expected IPO that aims to rival Elon Musk’s SpaceX blockbuster.

OpenAI seeks federal buy-in

Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, has told officials that public ownership could be a cleaner way to share the upside from AI. After first mentioning it, Sam has been the person carrying the idea into talks with Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

The plan would not be limited to OpenAI. Sam and other company leaders have discussed a wider setup where America’s top AI developers each place 5% of their equity into a public vehicle. That vehicle could work like the Alaska Permanent Fund, which invests state oil money and sends benefits tied to that wealth to the state government and residents.

That wider list could include Anthropic, Alphabet (GOOGL) through Google, Meta Platforms (META), and other U.S. AI companies.

OpenAI and Anthropic have both dealt with U.S. reviews that slowed the rollout of their newest models. Some Republicans and Trump advisers want tighter rules for the sector.

Both OpenAI and Anthropic are also preparing for future public listings. An IPO would open their ownership to a broader market and could hand large paper gains to current backers.

Sam has also spoken with Senator Bernie Sanders, who has gone much further than the 5% idea, pushing instead for public ownership closer to 50% of every major U.S. AI company through a sovereign wealth fund.

Back in April, OpenAI had called for a public wealth fund that would give “every citizen” a stake in AI-driven growth, including people who do not own stocks. In May, the OpenAI Foundation, its nonprofit arm, said society may need systems that give people “durable stakes” in the technology creating new value. The foundation also said the goal should include giving people “a stake and a voice” before major economic decisions are already finished, according to FT.

Trump expands federal equity stakes

In the second tenure of Trump, the US government has invested about $21 billion through 16 different corporate acquisitions, converting federal funding, including CHIPS Act-like grants, to equity stakes.

The biggest known holding is Intel (INTC), which the government took about a 10% position in after support tied to the CHIPS Act was reworked into equity at $20.47 per share. Financial media tracks the position as being up about $40 billion, which works out to roughly a 370% gain.

As Cryptopolitan reported at the time, Trump had earlier attacked Intel’s chief in public, then backed the chipmaker after Washington became a major shareholder.

The US government now also holds shares in MP Materials (MP), though the exact funding amount was not disclosed because the deal is tranche-based, but the stake is estimated at near 15%. The position is tracked at about a 136% gain and comes with a 10-year Pentagon purchase contract for rare earth magnets.

Trump administration’s portfolio also includes L3Harris Technologies (LHX), where the government holds a minority stake tied to defense and communications. That position is tracked at an 11% loss. GlobalFoundries (GFS) is another public holding, with a minority stake in the semiconductor foundry now beating the S&P 500.

Four other public positions are not named in the data released by the White House. What we know is that one is a defense or tech contractor using part of the remaining $9.9 billion and is beating the S&P 500. Another is a critical materials company also ahead of the index. A manufacturing supplier is underperforming. A logistics or technology company is also lagging.

Out of the eight public stocks in the US federal portfolio, five are currently ahead of the S&P 500, though the values change with market prices.

If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter.