OpenAI is pushing a striking new idea into the center of the A.I. policy debate: that Americans should receive a direct stake in the wealth created by artificial intelligence. In a policy paper published April 6, the company said lawmakers should consider creating a “Public Wealth Fund” that would let citizens share in the upside of A.I.-driven growth, as advanced systems reshape jobs, profits and the broader economy. 

According to the paper, OpenAI believes the gains from A.I. could otherwise become concentrated among a small number of companies, including firms like OpenAI itself. The document warns that without intervention, A.I. could widen inequality by rewarding those already positioned to benefit while leaving other workers and communities behind. 

The company’s proposal goes beyond broad rhetoric. In the document, OpenAI says a public fund could be seeded through cooperation between policymakers and A.I. companies, then invested in long-term assets tied both to A.I. firms and to the wider economy adopting the technology. Returns from that fund, it says, could be distributed directly to citizens, giving more Americans a share of A.I. wealth regardless of whether they already own stocks or other financial assets. 

OpenAI also argues that the tax system may need to change as A.I. shifts economic activity away from wages and toward corporate profits, capital gains and automated labor. The paper says policymakers could respond by increasing reliance on capital-based taxes, considering targeted levies on sustained A.I.-driven returns and exploring taxes related to automation, while preserving funding for programs such as Social Security, Medicaid and housing assistance. 

The proposal is notable not only because of its ambition, but because it comes from one of the companies racing to build the technology likely to cause the disruption. OpenAI describes the paper as an early, exploratory set of ideas rather than a final blueprint, but its message is clear: if A.I. creates enormous wealth, the public should not be left watching from the sidelines.