Sanders Proposes $7 Trillion AI Fund From 50% Stock Tax
Updated
Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 17
Sanders Proposes $7 Trillion AI Fund From 50% Stock Tax
3 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · Jun 17
Summary
A one-time 50% tax on the stock of AI companies with at least $200 million in annual AI sales would seed a public sovereign wealth fund that Bernie Sanders says would be worth nearly $7 trillion.
The plan would take shares rather than cash, making the public a major shareholder; a seven-member commission would manage the fund and use voting power to influence corporate decisions.
A 5% annual dividend from the fund would finance payments of more than $1,000 to every American, with additional gains directed to health care, education and housing.
Trump, OpenAI and Anthropic have all floated versions of public participation in AI wealth, but Sanders says his proposal goes much further by seeking public ownership of half of the largest AI firms.
Sanders is tying the idea to a broader anti-oligarchy campaign as voter anxiety over AI grows, with backlash over jobs, data centers and wealth concentration feeding the political opening.
Beyond a yearly check, how would public ownership of AI change the technology’s impact on our daily lives?
Could a 50% tax on AI giants unintentionally send the next tech revolution overseas?
Public Ownership at Scale: Analyzing the $7 Trillion American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act of 2026
Overview
Senator Bernie Sanders has introduced the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, aiming to create a $7 trillion public fund by imposing a one-time 50% stock tax on major U.S. AI companies. This bold proposal centers on public ownership, ensuring that the benefits and control of advanced AI technologies are widely shared, not just held by private companies. Sanders’ plan is much more aggressive than other ideas, rejecting small profit-sharing offers as insufficient. The Act seeks to prevent wealth concentration in the AI sector and promote a fairer distribution of AI-generated value to the public.