Usman Salis
● According to Andrew Lokenauth, OpenAI is now formally asking Washington to back its debt as it plans massive AI infrastructure expansion. Essentially, they want taxpayers to co-sign their loans. His take? "When private companies start asking for public funds, it's a sign the bubble will soon pop." He sees this as a warning for the entire AI sector.
● Bloomberg and AFP reported similar news, citing OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar, who explained that government guarantees would make it much easier to raise the enormous capital needed for compute and data centers—investments expected to top $1 trillion. She said OpenAI is looking for "an ecosystem of banks, private equity, maybe even governmental" partners, adding that loan guarantees would significantly cut financing costs for these high-risk projects.
● Prinz offered a different angle, noting that Friar specifically mentioned the possibility of a U.S. government "backstop" or "guarantee." He also highlighted recent comments from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who told Tyler Cowen he expects the federal government to become the "insurer of last resort" for AI financing. Altman clarified he doesn't expect heavy-handed regulation like in nuclear energy, but believes the scale and economic impact of AI make some federal involvement unavoidable.
● One thing's certain: OpenAI's request marks a turning point in U.S. AI policy. The real question now isn't whether AI infrastructure will expand, but how much financial risk taxpayers will end up carrying.
Usman Salis
