WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� As artificial intelligence companies reshape the economy and race toward trillion-dollar valuations, is proposing a sweeping transfer of wealth and power from the industry to the American public.
The legislation, shown first to The Associated Press, would create a sovereign wealth fund overseen by an independent commission and financed through a one-time 50% tax on the stock of the largest AI companies. Sanders estimates that the tax would create a nearly $7 trillion fund that would generate hundreds of billions of dollars annually in direct payments to Americans and programs such as health care, education and housing.
鈥淭he benefits cannot simply go to the handful of wealthy corporations. They will be shared by the American people,” the independent Vermont senator said in an interview Wednesday.
The idea of giving the public a stake in AI has from figures as ideologically diverse as President Donald Trump and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. But Sanders鈥� proposal goes much further, calling for public ownership of half of the largest AI companies and direct influence over corporate decision-making.
鈥淭he public has got to have a significant seat at the table to make sure that terrible things do not happen to ordinary people, and that in fact, AI benefits ordinary people, not hurts them,鈥� Sanders said.
How the fund would work
Sanders has previously proposed the sovereign wealth fund, but the bill summary obtained by the AP is the first legislative attempt to make it a reality.
The 50% tax would apply to AI companies that reach $200 million in annual AI sales. Any new AI company that reaches that benchmark would also be subject to the tax.
It would create a sovereign wealth fund 鈥� similar to those used the world and 鈥� that Sanders estimates would be worth around $7 trillion.
Unlike a traditional tax, the proposal would require companies to transfer stock rather than cash, effectively making the American public a major shareholder in the country鈥檚 largest AI firms.
A seven-person independent commission 鈥� nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate 鈥� would manage the fund and use its voting shares 鈥渢o block decisions that hurt the American people and to push for policies that help them,鈥� the bill summary says.
Sanders proposes that a 5% annual dividend from the fund would provide direct payments of more than $1,000 to every American. If companies grow, the gains would be used for public goods such as education, housing and health care.
Sanders argues taxpayers would not bear the losses if AI company valuations decline.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to lose any money, even if there is a bust in the bubble,鈥� Sanders said.
The commission would be directed to 鈥渢o block decisions that hurt the American people and to push for policies that help them,鈥� according to the summary.
Sanders emphasized that the proposal is just a start.
鈥淲e think this is the best that we could do at the moment, and it鈥檚 certainly a major, major, major step forward from giving unilateral and total power to a handful of multi-billionaires,鈥� Sanders said.
The idea has supporters in the White House and Silicon Valley
Sanders is not alone in pushing for a public stake in the companies that develop AI.
Trump, who recently signed an order to have new AI models , has also mused about the government in the companies that develop AI, saying 鈥渢here鈥檚 something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public.”
OpenAI 鈥� led by Altman 鈥� in April proposed to 鈥渃reate a public wealth fund that provides every citizen 鈥� including those not invested in financial markets 鈥� with a stake in AI-driven economic growth.鈥�
Anthropic, one of OpenAI鈥檚 top competitors and recently , has been open to similar ideas, with CEO Dario Amodei writing recently that 鈥渦niversal basic income could be financed through taxes on relevant companies.鈥�
Trump on Wednesday attended a session at the G7 summit in France with top industry leaders, including Altman and Amodei.
Still, Sanders’ push is much more aggressive than any of these. In Sanders’ meeting with Altman, they remained far apart on how large of a stake the public would get, according to those in the room.
鈥淚 think people like Sam Altman and Trump (who) may be sympathetic to this are saying: 鈥極kay, look, we鈥檙e making zillions of dollars so we鈥檙e going to be nice guys and maybe we鈥檒l buy off the public. We will give 5% of our profits back into the government,鈥欌�� said Sanders.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 not what we鈥檙e talking about. What we鈥檙e talking about are two very different things.鈥�
Taking the fight to voters
Sanders鈥� 鈥淔ighting Oligarchy鈥� tour drew massive crowds across the country last year as he appeared with high-profile lawmakers such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. Asked whether he plans to make AI ownership and wealth inequality part of that message on the campaign trail, Sanders responded, 鈥淎bsolutely.”
It鈥檚 a message other candidates are using ahead of the midterms as they tap into voters鈥� angst about the technology. Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Mallory McMorrow unveiled a plan to 鈥減rotect workers in the age of AI,鈥� while New York Democratic House candidate Alex Bores has also made AI regulation a campaign issue.
Data center projects across the country have drawn opposition from residents concerned about electricity demand, water consumption and environmental impacts. Some states once eager to attract the facilities, including Ohio and Virginia, have moved to reconsider tax incentives.
On , commencement speakers have been interrupted by boos when discussing artificial intelligence. About 70% of college students see AI as a threat to their job prospects, according to a 2025 poll by the at the Harvard Kennedy School.
鈥淲orkers will be thrown out of their jobs while billionaires, multi-billionaires become even richer,” Sanders said. 鈥淭he American people are aware of that and don鈥檛 want to see it happen.鈥�
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