OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has suggested granting 5% of the company’s equity to a U.S. sovereign wealth fund, according to a Thursday report from the Financial Times, which cited two people familiar with the matter. Under this proposal, other AI firms would also contribute similar stakes, though many details remain unclear. The FT’s reporting indicated that the donation would aim to “secure good relations with the administration and… address political blowback.”

Similar discussions surfaced in a CNBC report from June, and were later confirmed by President Trump, who noted he had talked about “concepts where pieces could be given to the American public, where the American public essentially becomes a partner with the companies.” At that time, no specific size for the proposed equity stake was mentioned. The talks are still preliminary, and according to the FT, any formal action would likely require congressional approval—a factor that would significantly complicate the process.

The idea of a public AI fund has also been publicly discussed by Altman, and OpenAI has become increasingly specific in its proposals for how such a fund might be structured. Most recently, a policy paper titled “Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age,” released by OpenAI in April, suggested a public wealth fund that could invest directly in AI labs and companies deploying their technology. “Returns from the Fund could be distributed directly to citizens, allowing more people to participate directly in the upside of AI-driven growth, regardless of their starting wealth or access to capital,” the document states.

A more aggressive version of this policy was proposed by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in June, calling for a one-time 50% tax on AI company stock, with the collected shares deposited into a public wealth fund. The bill, named the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, would apply to all “systemically important” AI companies, including those involved in data centers, infrastructure, or robotics. Under this proposal, companies like Google and SpaceX—which have AI as only part of their business—would be allowed to spin off non-AI portions to avoid taxation. The bill has not yet advanced to committee.