Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act to establish a public ownership stake in major artificial intelligence companies [1].
The proposal seeks to redistribute the financial gains of the AI industry to the general public. Sanders said that because AI is built using public data, the wealth it generates should benefit humanity rather than a small group of corporate executives [1, 3].
Under the terms of the legislation, the federal government would impose a one-time 50% tax on AI company stock [2]. This mechanism would be used to secure a 50% public ownership stake in the largest AI firms [1, 3].
Beyond financial ownership, the act would grant the U.S. government voting shares and seats on the boards of these companies [2]. This structure is intended to give citizens a direct say in how AI technology is developed and deployed [3, 4].
The legislation was first introduced in 2024 [2, 1]. It targets the rapid accumulation of wealth within the tech sector, specifically focusing on firms that have scaled quickly through the use of massive datasets harvested from the public domain [1, 3].
Sanders said the goal is to ensure that the transition to an AI-driven economy does not further concentrate wealth in the hands of a few billionaires [1]. By transforming these companies into partially public entities, the government would theoretically redirect dividends, and profits toward public services or direct citizen benefits [1, 4].
“The wealth it generates must benefit humanity”
This proposal represents a shift from traditional AI regulation—which typically focuses on safety and ethics—toward a model of economic nationalization. By treating AI as a public utility or a common resource based on the data it consumes, the act attempts to create a sovereign wealth fund similar to those used by oil-rich nations to ensure long-term national prosperity.
