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OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

theguardian.com

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Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#111

Post by senordevnyc »

bilekas wrote: post #21

This feels a bit off.. How is the government supposed to be able to regulate them impartially when they're literally invested in them. What if a competitive startup startup starts to really take away from OpenAi's profits and then all of a sudden requires some approval for merger with Anthropic for example, I don't know if I would trust the government to be fair in their decision here. Leaving aside the potential for…

You’re completely correct, of course, but I also think it’s worth remembering that the current regulatory environment is also made up of people, so the opportunity for corruption is already there. It does seem preferable to at least have the government putting its thumb on the scales to benefit the country at large, versus money under the table that benefits politicians and bureaucrats.

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#112

Post by mrguyorama »

blasphemers wrote: post #108
amelius wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everything seems rotten with this administration.

Wasn't Bernie saying the government should confiscate half of OpenAI and Anthropic. This seems like sama is just trying to get ahead of it.

5% vs 50% is a dramatic difference in how things would work out.

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#113

Post by triceratops »

rchaud wrote: post #103
CodingJeebus wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not to mention that a government ownership stake also incentivizes a bailout if this all goes bust.

A 5% stake in an overvalued private company without public financials and with an indeterminate timeline to profitability is a bailout. Shareholders cash out while the taxpayer is stuck with the bill.

Is the government buying their stake or being given a stake? In the second scenario there's no bagholding.

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#114

Post by Omatic810 »

blasphemers wrote: post #108
amelius wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everything seems rotten with this administration.

Wasn't Bernie saying the government should confiscate half of OpenAI and Anthropic. This seems like sama is just trying to get ahead of it.

True, especially since President Sanders tends to be a bit heavy-handed on exerting political pressure. He's been issuing an unprecedented number of executive orders since he took office...

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#115

Post by tencentshill »

freakynit wrote: post #106

We may not see it yet, but, this is a way to capture government and use that to suppress competition and any dissent. The moment the government owns equity, every regulatory decision becomes conflicted. The top 3-4 AI companies in whic the givernment owns equity, will become too politically entangled to fail or to let fail or be meaningfully competed against, or "allowed" to be competed against. This will also lead t…

Good. Maybe this will incentivize a push to make the regulatory agencies truly independent, like the fed. the executive branch is clearly not up to the task.

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#116

Post by triceratops »

exabrial wrote: post #12

Taxes are theft. This is absurd. There’s zero reason to bail these ding dongs out. Their entire business proposition has been to keep warm by incinerating fresh cash.

How is it a bailout if the government just takes 5% of the shares?

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#117

Post by stouset »

bilekas wrote: post #21

This feels a bit off.. How is the government supposed to be able to regulate them impartially when they're literally invested in them. What if a competitive startup startup starts to really take away from OpenAi's profits and then all of a sudden requires some approval for merger with Anthropic for example, I don't know if I would trust the government to be fair in their decision here. Leaving aside the potential for…

This is quite literally government control of the means of production, which is the central tenet of the economic philosophy that the right repeatedly claims is their greatest mortal fear: socialism.

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#118

Post by sph »

khalic wrote: post #77
gordonhart wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Objectively it’s absurd to have an organization take a significant portion of your money on threat of imprisonment just to invest it in a corporation

First, the form: Starting a sentence with Objectively is not a magic way to make the sentence objective. It's a declaration of your intent to be objective, which isn't the case here, you're doing a reductio ad absurdum. Second, the actual issue: socialisation of common costs seems reasonable to me. You use it, you participate, it's not an absurd concept.

Is there a way not to participate and not be taxed? If there's no choice then it's a moot point

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#119

Post by HWR_14 »

CodingJeebus wrote: post #94
larsnystrom wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I assume that’s why Altman wants the government as a co-owner.

Not to mention that a government ownership stake also incentivizes a bailout if this all goes bust.

Why?

Re: OpenAI ‘in early talks to give 5% stake to US government’

#120

Post by downrightmike »

rayiner wrote: post #102
bilekas wrote: post #21

This feels a bit off.. How is the government supposed to be able to regulate them impartially when they're literally invested in them. What if a competitive startup startup starts to really take away from OpenAi's profits and then all of a sudden requires some approval for merger with Anthropic for example, I don't know if I would trust the government to be fair in their decision here. Leaving aside the potential for…

Wouldn’t the solution to that be for the government to also demand a 5% stake in every AI company? Along the lines of what Sanders wants to do?

We really need to go back to the 95% tax system on these giant corps
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