US President Donald Trump has said that he would meet top artificial intelligence firms to discuss the possibility of the government taking a stake in their companies to address public concern over AI.
News site NOTUS reported that Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, recently discussed the idea with Trump administration officials and pitched it directly to the president last year.
"There's something very interesting about it, where it almost becomes a partnership with the American public, and we'll look into that," Trump said on Friday.
Trump added that he would meet "all of the companies" at the White House as soon as next week.
Discussions have reportedly included AI tech giants ceding shares to the government, with returns on the investment delivering dividend payouts to citizens.
"There's so much money and it's so big that there are concepts where the American public essentially becomes a partner with the companies," Trump said.
"The American people can benefit from the success of AI, and by doing that they're going to like it better."
Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order creating a voluntary framework under which AI developers will share advanced models with the government before their public release.
Using AI in defence
The president, meanwhile, issued a memo on Friday that calls for the US military and national security agencies to accelerate their use of artificial intelligence, while protecting civil liberties and maintaining oversight of autonomous weapon systems.
The memo addressed much of the president’s Cabinet, including the secretaries of defence and homeland security as well as the attorney general and director of national intelligence.
Trump is requiring an updated directive on autonomous weapon systems "to ensure the deliberate adoption of AI systems that respect the chain of command and operational authorities."
The memo also restricts the use of AI to "censor free speech, embed ideological bias, or conduct unlawful surveillance against the American people."
The memo comes at a time of growing anxiety over AI in American society, including helping the military identify targets on the battlefield.
