More and more US employees back forcing AI companies to transfer half of their stock into a public wealth fund
AI is developing an image problem, and respondents to a new survey have made their feelings clear: Bernie Sanders’ demand that AI firms contribute stock to a massive public fund is widely supported.
Conducted during June 2026 by the nonpartisan survey research company Verasight, the survey consisted of 17 questions sent to 1,690 adults (18 and above), finding over two-thirds (69%) supporting Sanders’ policy – a figure that only drops to 64% once it is revealed which politician the idea is associated with.
The bad news for the AI industry doesn’t end there, as respondents demonstrated a notable distrust for how AI companies conduct themselves, with nearly half (43%) believing that the regulations proposed by the AI companies are designed to benefit those same companies. Incredibly, 30% of respondents trust the US federal government more than companies like OpenAI and Anthropic.
Senator Bernie Sanders’ plan gives the public a direct stake in America’s largest AI companies, with a one-off tax paid not in cash, but in stock. "Since AI is built on the collective knowledge of humanity, the wealth it generated must benefit humanity," he said, announcing his planned Act on social media.
This would, according to Sanders’ proposal, deliver an annual $1000 check to U.S. citizens, and fund healthcare and education.
"The findings from our latest survey demonstrate a rare instance of bipartisan agreement," noted Ben Leff, CEO and Co-Founder of Verasight.
"There is an undeniable desire among Americans of both parties for federal oversight, absolute transparency, and accountability to ensure AI safety and to enable all Americans to participate in the economic benefits of AI."
Even with a polarizing figure like Bernie Sanders attached, the wealth fund idea retains support, which suggests that while people are happy to use AI to answer questions, streamline processes, and make tasks quicker, they’re less comfortable with the industry’s wider impact.
While AI companies are becoming increasingly unpopular, it isn’t all bad news. The survey quizzed subjects about their feelings on other industries, including tobacco, pharmaceuticals, and casinos, along with social media. If the tide is turning against AI, it still isn’t regarded as poorly as casinos or tobacco.
Feelings about AI companies are also notably more positive than social media. Given the concerns expressed about federal oversight and public wealth funds, there could be an avenue for OpenAI, Google Gemini, Anthropic, Microsoft, and others to improve the general feeling about AI: accepting a degree of social responsibility.
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Christian Cawley has extensive experience as a writer and editor in consumer electronics, IT and entertainment media. He has contributed to TechRadar since 2017 and has been published in Computer Weekly, Linux Format, ComputerActive, and other publications.
He currently heads up the team at smart home website Matter Alpha, and writes about retro gaming at Gaming Retro.
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