How SpaceX and Anthropic are Restoring Public Trust in AI
As more people worry about AI than ever before, technology leaders are finding that one way to reassure the public may be to give people a share of the money and value these companies create.
After Anthropic promised to give 5% of its company shares to a public benefit fund, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has promised to give one SpaceX share to every child in America.
I recommend giving the shares directly to the public. This is what I will be doing
Elon Musk, CEO at Tesla and SpaceX
These promises of financial support come at a time when people are paying close attention to AI companies because of concerns about safety, job losses and how quickly the technology is developing.
Leaders across the industry share concerns about the speed of AI development. Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, has called for AI development to slow down.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and Elon Musk also support Dario's proposal to slow development across the industry, allow independent experts to monitor AI and strengthen government oversight.
An offer to reassure the public
Technology companies are offering shares to the public to build trust as their financial values increase. If shareholders approve the plan on 19 October 2026, 5% of Anthropic's shares will go to its Public Benefit Fund.
The fund will receive another 2% in company shares for every 50% increase in the company's value above a set starting point. The fund will be set up as a limited liability company (LLC) fully owned by Anthropic. It will not lobby politicians in the United States or other countries.
In a reply on X, Elon said: “I recommend giving the shares directly to the public. This is what I will be doing.”
He has promised to give one SpaceX share to every child in America in 2027. He has not yet explained exactly how the shares will be given out.
KEY FACTS & FIGURES
5%: The share of Anthropic that it has promised to give to its Public Benefit Fund, if shareholders approve the plan on 19 October 2026.
2%: The extra share of the company that Anthropic can give to the fund for every 50% increase in its value above a set starting point.
45%: The increase in Anthropic's revenue from one quarter to the next in the three months ending September 2026.
US$16.8bn: The revenue Anthropic earned in the three months ending September 2026.
US$1tn: The possible value of Anthropic as it prepares to sell shares on the stock market.
US$85.7bn: The total amount SpaceX raised in its record-breaking initial public offering (IPO) in June 2026.
These promises come as companies earn large amounts of money while also spending heavily on infrastructure. Anthropic told potential investors that its revenue rose by 45% to US$16.8bn in the three months ending September 2026.
Anthropic is getting ready to sell shares on the stock market in a listing that could value the company at more than US$1tn. Meanwhile, SpaceX set a record in June 2026 by raising US$85.7bn in its IPO, the first time its shares were offered to the public.
However, this business growth is happening while many people worry about the economy and their jobs. Technology companies have cut thousands of jobs after investing in AI to help them work more efficiently.
In 2024, research by the International Monetary Fund suggested that AI would affect 40% of jobs worldwide and 60% of jobs in advanced economies.
KEY FACTS & FIGURES
40%: The share of jobs worldwide that could be affected by AI, according to 2024 research by the International Monetary Fund.
60%: The estimated share of jobs in advanced economies that could be affected by the use of AI.
Rules are not keeping up with AI's abilities
Speaking on the BBC Big Boss Interview podcast, Brad Smith, President of Microsoft, warned that AI does not have enough oversight.
He said a carton of milk faces stricter safety checks before it reaches a shop shelf than AI does, even though AI has almost no rules to oversee it.
“Science is creating more powerful AI models advancing much faster than science that aligns those models with human values and controls,” Brad said.
Growing concerns about AI also led US President Donald Trump to sign a document that makes AI leaders responsible for safety. The document is described as “morally binding,” meaning it carries a moral promise rather than necessarily creating a legal duty.
He also appointed Jay Clayton, the Director of National Intelligence, to lead an AI task force. The task force will coordinate work with consumers, companies and religious organisations.
Giving shares to the public may help people feel more reassured right away. However, technology leaders also need to recognise that giving away money or shares cannot replace strong, legally binding rules and safety standards.
- Anthropic: A company that develops the Claude AI model and focuses on building safer AI systems. It is a public benefit corporation and uses a method called Constitutional AI to train models to follow ethical guidelines and reduce harmful answers. Its AI tools are used by businesses and individual customers around the world.
- SpaceX: A company that builds rockets and spacecraft and operates satellites. It develops advanced rockets, builds spacecraft and provides fast internet access around the world through its Starlink satellite network.
- Tesla: A company that makes electric vehicles, solar panels and energy storage systems. It aims to support the shift to cleaner energy through battery technology, large-scale manufacturing and the development of self-driving vehicle systems.
- Microsoft: A global technology company that provides business technology, software and cloud computing services. Its products include the Azure cloud platform and Microsoft 365 tools. It also makes major investments in AI research.
- OpenAI: A research organisation that aims to develop safe artificial general intelligence (AGI), a form of AI that could perform many different tasks at a human level. It created ChatGPT and develops generative AI systems. Its work includes basic research into AI models and digital tools intended to benefit people around the world.