The Trump administration and leading AI company Anthropic have not held any discussions about the U.S. government acquiring an ownership stake in the firm, according to a source familiar with the matter. Neither the White House nor the U.S. Commerce Department responded immediately to requests for comment, while Anthropic declined to address the report.

The clarification follows a Financial Times report published earlier on Thursday, which claimed that OpenAI had discussed the possibility of granting the U.S. government a 5% equity stake. The report sparked speculation about whether similar conversations were taking place with other major AI developers.

As artificial intelligence companies continue to grow rapidly, they are drawing increased attention from lawmakers and regulators. Officials in Washington are weighing concerns over the potential misuse of advanced AI systems and debating whether the economic gains generated by the industry should be shared more broadly with the American public. In June, the Commerce Department removed export restrictions that had briefly been placed on two of Anthropic's most advanced AI models. The controls had been introduced over concerns that the systems lacked sufficient safeguards against misuse.

The U.S. government has also intensified its review of newly released AI models, aiming to assess potential national security risks. Policymakers remain concerned that highly capable AI technologies could be exploited by foreign military or intelligence organizations, including those in China and Russia. However, companies are not legally required to submit their models for government review.

Last month, President Donald Trump said his administration was considering ways to allow Americans to benefit financially from the success of major AI companies, amid growing debate over how the wealth created by the industry should be distributed. Senator Bernie Sanders has suggested a more expansive approach, proposing that large AI firms provide the federal government with a 50% ownership stake and representation on their boards. Sanders argues that such measures would help ensure the public receives a meaningful share of the economic benefits generated by artificial intelligence.