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Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders and Sam Altman are all talking about public ownership in AI

Sanders proposed a 50% public stake in AI companies and discussed the idea with Sam Altman.

Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders and Sam Altman are all talking about public ownership in AI
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This article1 analysis · Oct 6, 2026

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Jun 6, 2026
tl;dr

Bernie Sanders proposed giving the public a 50% ownership stake in AI companies, and Sam Altman said he supports the general idea but not Sanders’ proposed threshold. Donald Trump also voiced interest in a public partnership with AI companies, highlighting unusual cross-party interest in public participation in AI’s growth.

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Bernie Sanders I · VT · SEN
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Bernie Sanders
I · VT · SEN

Senator proposing public ownership in AI companies

PRIMARY SUBJECT
Donald Trump
R · President of the United States

President expressing interest in a public partnership with AI companies

Trump's version of this story ↗

New York Democratic House candidate who has made AI regulation a campaign issue

Elissa Slotkin
D · MI · SEN

Michigan senator commenting on grassroots opposition to data centers

Josh Hawley
R · MO · SEN

Missouri senator calling for limits on further data-center development

Rashida Tlaib
D · MI-12

Michigan representative criticizing the data-center project and Whitmer

ALSO MENTIONED  Gretchen Whitmer, Governor defending a data-center project in Michigan; Michael Kratsios, White House chief science and technology adviser who met with Altman

Part of a bigger story

13 OUTLETS
Bernie Sanders Meets Sam Altman to Discuss Public Ownership of AI

Sanders proposed a 50% public stake in AI companies and discussed the idea with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Altman said he supports public equity in principle but not Sanders’s proposed threshold. Center outlets focus on Sanders’s proposal and Altman’s response; some also connect them to Donald Trump’s separate interest in a public partnership and wider disputes over AI’s costs, oversight and effects.

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