Trump to meet AI leaders to discuss US investment in their companies

President Donald Trump will meet leaders of major artificial intelligence companies next week to discuss potential U.S. government investment in their firms, framing it as a public-private partnership [1]. The meeting is expected to take place at the White House and involve companies such as Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, SpaceX, and Anthropic [1]. Trump stated he has been considering the idea of government investment in AI for about a year [1]. The proposal echoes a recent plan from Senator Bernie Sanders, who suggested creating a sovereign wealth fund where the U.S. would take a 50% stake in AI companies [1]. Trump remarked, "Where economics are concerned, we have things that aren't that far apart," regarding Sanders' idea [1]. The potential investment comes amid a historic boom in AI investment and capability, catalyzed by the 2022 release of OpenAI's ChatGPT [6]. OpenAI, which developed ChatGPT, is a pivotal player; Microsoft has invested over $13 billion into the company and provides its cloud computing resources [4]. Microsoft itself has heavily integrated AI into products like its Bing search engine and Copilot chatbot [7][8]. This move occurs during Trump's second presidency, which began in January 2025 and is characterized by aggressive policy actions, including signing a record 225 executive orders in 2025 and pursuing an expansionist foreign policy dubbed the "Donroe Doctrine" [2][5]. The administration has also launched the Department of Government Efficiency to shrink federal spending, though it now contemplates a significant new financial commitment to the private AI sector [2]. AI company leaders have recently engaged with Washington. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman met with Senator Sanders, and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met with senior White House officials, signaling a thaw despite an ongoing lawsuit between Anthropic and the Department of Defense [1]. Anthropic co-founder Jack Clark stated the company is in "daily conversations with the U.S. government" regarding national security [1].