Trump administration officials discuss acquiring government equity stakes in AI companies ahead of Anthropic export controls

@firstadopter How is this different from Intel stake?

News from @Eleanor_Mueller:

Before the latest Anthropic export controls, top Trump advisers were already discussing what gov stakes in AI companies could look like — with Bessent and Lutnick leaning two different ways.

https://www.semafor.com/article/06/17/2026/trump-advisers-weigh-structure-of-potential-ai-stakes

News: It's still unclear whether the Trump administration pursues an equity stake in AI firms -- but that doesn't mean people don't have opinions on how it could work.

People familiar with the talks told me Bessent's preference is Trump Accounts, while Lutnick’s is some type of sovereign wealth fund.

Meanwhile, most of the industry doesn't want the government to have a stake at all: https://www.semafor.com/article/06/17/2026/trump-advisers-weigh-structure-of-potential-ai-stakes

Sources: Trump officials discussed ways to structure government equity stakes in AI companies, with Commerce Secretary Lutnick favoring a sovereign wealth fund (@eleanor_mueller / Semafor)

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@firstadopter Yeah, we are not in Kansas anymore.

@firstadopter Nigga shut the fuck up. Like you care at all about what capitalism is or isn’t. Just put the stocks in my Gmail inbox

@firstadopter Fuck anthropic!

@Eleanor_Mueller These guys seize shares of private companies. Your local city council justifies parking meters and building permits as revenue sources. It's all the same thing - government that no longer knows its role.

@firstadopter Bailout appetizers