OpenAIs Altman urges US to expand Chips Act tax credit for AI growth

On November 7, OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, reiterated the company's plea for the U.S. government to broaden the scope of the Chips Act tax credit to include artificial intelligence-related sectors. This request comes as the nation aims to strengthen its position as a frontrunner in the artificial intelligence landscape. Altman's remarks follow a letter from OpenAI's Chief Global Affairs Officer, Chris Lehane, sent on October 27 to Michael Kratsios, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. The letter advocates for the inclusion of AI server production, AI data centers, and grid components under the Advanced Manufacturing Investment Credit (AMIC), a federal incentive aimed at bolstering domestic semiconductor manufacturing. In a post shared on X, Altman emphasized the importance of U.S. re-industrialization across various sectors, stating, "We think U.S. re-industrialization across the entire stack — fabs, turbines, transformers, steel, and much more — will help everyone in our industry, and other industries (including us)." He clarified, however, that the tax credit sought is distinctly different from federal loan guarantees that OpenAI has discussed with the government for the construction of chip factories, not data centers. Earlier this week, Altman mentioned that OpenAI plans to invest a staggering $1.4 trillion in computational resources over the next eight years. The surge in demand for AI technologies, highlighted by the popularity of OpenAI's ChatGPT, has led major tech firms to announce ambitious projects aimed at establishing more data centers and advancing chip technology. Yet, David Sacks, the White House AI and crypto advisor, has indicated that there will be no federal bailouts for AI initiatives.