CoinTelegraph
President Trump said the US government could take direct equity stakes in OpenAI and Anthropic, modeling the arrangement on its recent Intel deal, in an interview with TIME. The comments extend a US industrial-policy turn that began with the Intel transaction, in which the federal government took a roughly 10% position in the chipmaker in exchange for CHIPS Act funding.
Why it matters
The Intel deal was framed as a one-off national-security intervention in semiconductor manufacturing. Applying the same template to frontier-model labs would convert AI development into direct industrial policy, with the US Treasury sitting on the cap table of the labs building the models Washington wants to outpace China on. No other major government has gone that far inside private AI research.
Market impact
The remark lands the same week Anthropic closed a $13 billion Series F at a $183 billion post-money valuation, with investors including Iconiq, Fidelity, and Lightspeed. If the US were to take a meaningful slice of either lab, the open question is dilution, governance, and whether export-control leverage gets traded for equity. Watch for follow-up language from the Commerce Department and OSTP; this kind of statement usually gets a clarifying walk-back or a follow-up mechanism within 72 hours.
Frequently asked questions
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What did Trump say about US stakes in OpenAI and Anthropic?
In a TIME interview, President Trump said the US government could take direct equity stakes in OpenAI and Anthropic, modeling the arrangement on its recent deal that gave the government a roughly 10% position in Intel.
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How does the Intel deal relate to potential stakes in AI labs?
The federal government took a roughly 10% stake in Intel in exchange for CHIPS Act funding. Trump is signaling the same template could be applied to frontier AI labs, turning AI into direct industrial policy.
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Has any other government taken equity in private AI labs?
No. Direct government ownership of frontier AI labs would be unprecedented among major economies and would place the US Treasury on the cap tables of OpenAI and Anthropic.
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What is Anthropic's current valuation after its latest raise?
Anthropic closed a $13 billion Series F at a $183 billion post-money valuation, with investors including Iconiq, Fidelity, and Lightspeed.
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What are the open questions if the US takes stakes in AI labs?
Key issues include dilution for existing investors, governance changes, and whether the US would trade export-control leverage for equity. Follow-up signals from the Commerce Department and OSTP are the next things to watch.
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