OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on loan guarantee controversy: To the degree the government wants to …

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has once again addressed the ongoing debate over the company seeking US government-backed loan guarantees for its AI infrastructure. In a new post on X, Altman clarified that OpenAI does not want or need such guarantees and that recent comments have been misunderstood.

Altman said that while OpenAI supports U.S. reindustrialization and domestic supply chain efforts, that should not be confused with asking for financial guarantees from the government.“The government has played a role in critical infrastructure builds. Our public submission (posted on our blog) shares our thinking and suggests ideas for how the U.S. government can support domestic supply chain/manufacturing,” Altman wrote.“To the degree the government wants to do something to help ensure a domestic supply chain, great. This is part of a national policy that makes sense to me. But that's super different than loan guarantees to OpenAI, and we hope that's clear.”Altman added that the goal is to strengthen the U.S. industrial base across multiple sectors, including semiconductors, turbines, transformers, and steel. He said these investments would benefit the broader economy, not just AI companies.

“We think U.S. reindustrialization across the entire stack—fabs, turbines, transformers, steel, and much more—will help everyone in our industry, and other industries (including us),” he said.

Debate over “loan guarantees”

The discussion began when OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar reportedly mentioned the possibility of federal loan guarantees for AI data center development.Critics raised concerns that such support could create a conflict of interest, tying OpenAI’s financial stability to the U.S.

government. “Imagine that the federal government made a loan guarantee to OpenAI. Now, OpenAI's financial health is tied up with the government's balance sheet,” wrote an X user to whose post Altman quoted. Altman stressed that OpenAI’s position has been consistent—supporting national infrastructure and manufacturing policies, not government bailouts.He pointed to examples such as the CHIPS Act, where the U.S. government helps reduce the cost of capital for domestic semiconductor manufacturers. These policies, he said, serve broader national interests rather than specific companies.