OpenAI Calls for AI Regulation, New Tax Models

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has published a 13-page policy blueprint titled "Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age: Ideas to keep people first", setting out proposals for how governments could tax, regulate, and redistribute wealth created by artificial intelligence.

The document argues that advanced AI could bring major economic gains while also creating sharp social disruption. It frames the challenge as a need for a new social contract, pointing to risks such as widespread job displacement and security threats. Altman also describes urgency around near-term dangers, including potential cyberattacks and biological threats.

Among the central ideas is a proposed Public Wealth Fund designed to give every American citizen a direct stake in AI-driven growth. The blueprint suggests the fund could be supported by AI companies, positioning it as a mechanism to share benefits more broadly if AI concentrates wealth among a smaller set of firms and investors.

The paper also raises the concept of "robot taxes", describing a shift in the tax base away from payroll and toward capital gains and corporate income. The rationale presented is that if AI reduces wage-based employment and compresses payroll tax receipts, governments may need alternative revenue sources to fund public services and social support.

Other proposals include incentives for a four-day workweek, a "Right to AI" aimed at affordable access, and the development of containment playbooks for rogue AI systems. The blueprint further suggests an auto-triggering safety net tied to economic data, intended to activate support automatically when conditions deteriorate.

OpenAI’s move is presented as an effort to engage early in policy debates and to frame the company as a responsible participant in the AI development ecosystem. Altman said the document is meant to serve as a starting point for serious discussion, while acknowledging that AI’s impact on society and the economy will be significant.