OpenAI Releases 13-Page Policy White Paper Proposing Robot Tax, Universal AI Wealth Fund, and Four-Day Workweek

OpenAI releases a 13-page policy white paper titled "Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age," proposing a series of reforms for the economic and social order following the advent of superintelligence. Altman stated in an Axios interview that superintelligence is imminent, and gradual policy adjustments are far from sufficient; a "new social contract at the level of progress and new policies" is needed.
The white paper focuses on three goals: widespread shared prosperity, risk reduction, and universal access to AI. Core proposals include:
1. Tax reform: As AI replaces human labor, payroll taxes (currently the main source of funding for social security, Medicaid, and other programs) will gradually diminish, shifting towards taxing capital gains and corporate income, and exploring an "automation labor tax," commonly referred to as a robot tax.
2. Universal AI Wealth Fund: Modeled after the Alaska Permanent Fund (which distributes oil revenues to residents), establish a national public wealth fund that allows every citizen to directly hold a share of AI-driven economic growth, with part of the funding coming from contributions from AI companies.
3. Four-day workweek: Convert productivity gains from AI into "efficiency dividends," suggesting the government pilot a 32-hour workweek with unchanged salaries and maintained output levels.
4. Automatic safety net trigger mechanism: When AI-induced unemployment indicators reach preset thresholds, automatically increase unemployment benefits, wage insurance, and cash subsidies, gradually phasing out once the job market recovers.
5. Position AI access as a "fundamental right to participate in the modern economy."
The white paper also acknowledges scenarios where dangerous AI systems "cannot be easily recalled," due to their autonomy and self-replication capabilities, and includes contingency plans for government coordination to respond to out-of-control AI. Altman warned that a significant cyberattack exploiting AI models is "completely possible," and creating new pathogenic agents with AI "is no longer a theoretical hypothesis."
Altman said, "Some ideas will be good, some will be bad, but we do feel a sense of urgency." OpenAI is simultaneously launching a research funding program offering up to $100k in scholarships and up to $1 million in API credits for related policy research, and will hold an OpenAI Workshop in Washington in May to discuss these issues.
OpenAI is preparing for an IPO, and Congress is drafting AI legislation; the white paper was released at this time. While its technology could disrupt the job market, proactively proposing higher taxes on AI companies and establishing redistribution mechanisms serves as a prescient gesture toward regulation and adds a layer of "responsible AI" narrative to its public offering.