Sam Altman wants to reshape the American economy around artificial intelligence, and he’s not waiting for Congress to figure it out.

OpenAI published a 13-page policy blueprint this week that reads like a Greatest Hits of progressive economic ideas, reframed for the AI age. The document compares today’s moment to the Industrial Revolution and the Progressive Era that followed—suggesting that AI is so transformative it warrants a similar governmental response.

Here’s what’s in it: a public wealth fund that would give every citizen a stake in the AI-driven economy, taxes on automated labor (because AI could hollow out the tax base funding Social Security and Medicaid), and a recommendation that employers and unions use AI-driven productivity gains to negotiate four-day workweeks with no pay cuts.

It’s quite a vision. And it’s worth taking seriously—not because OpenAI necessarily has the answers, but because they’re trying to shape the narrative around AI’s impact before regulators do it for them.

Why this matters

The timing is deliberate. Recent polling shows a majority of voters now believe AI’s risks outweigh its benefits. Concerns about job displacement, rising electricity costs, and military applications are all climbing. Altman is essentially trying to get ahead of the backlash by proposing solutions before the political system demands them.

The document argues that “industrial policy can play an important role when market forces alone aren’t sufficient—when new technologies create opportunities and risks that existing institutions aren’t equipped to manage.” This is a significant shift for a company that has historically favored minimal regulation.

The uncomfortable questions

There’s a certain irony in one of the world’s most valuable AI companies calling for higher taxes and wealth redistribution. Some will see this as genuine concern for workers. Others will see it as strategic positioning—preempting stricter regulations with a friendlier alternative.

Either way, it signals that the AI industry knows the regulatory heat is coming. Altman’s blueprint is essentially saying: “Let us help design the future, or it’ll be designed for us.”

Whether Congress listens is another matter. But this document is worth watching—it sets the tone for the next several years of AI policy debate in the UK and beyond.