Bridgewater Associates, the major hedge fund founded by billionaire Ray Dalio, has put forward a proposal to address the economic and societal impacts of artificial intelligence by advocating for a tax on AI usage. The firm’s senior leadership, including Chief Investment Officer Greg Jensen and CEO Nir Bar Dea, has engaged with policymakers across party lines in Washington to discuss measures aimed at protecting workers and distributing the financial gains stemming from AI technology.
In a detailed essay released last month, Bridgewater called for "immediate policy action" to mitigate the risks posed by AI advancements, including potential job displacement and safety concerns. The firm proposed implementing a “token tax” on AI, estimated at a 35% levy, which could generate up to $600 billion by 2030. Revenues from this tax would be used to purchase shares in leading AI firms, with the resulting equity distributed broadly to the public, creating what the firm describes as “citizen equity.”
This approach diverges from calls by tech figures such as OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk who have suggested universal basic income (UBI) as a response to AI-related job losses. Bridgewater’s Jensen argued that UBI grants too much influence to government bureaucracies, whereas distributing shares directly to citizens would decentralize power and provide a more direct economic stake in AI’s profits.
Jensen and Bar Dea emphasized the urgency of acting swiftly to ensure that the benefits of AI are equitably shared before the technology becomes deeply entrenched and harder to regulate. They warned that, without intervention, AI’s rapid diffusion could lead to widespread societal disruption and diminished prospects for effective safeguards.
Industry analysts note that aiding wider adoption of AI with supportive policy could also protect long-term investment interests by reducing public backlash and preventing harsh regulatory crackdowns. Jeremy Bearer-Friend, an associate law professor at George Washington University, highlighted the potential for public equity stakes to enhance governance and reinforce public safety. He suggested that an AI equity tax could empower citizens with a voice in corporate decisions affecting AI’s societal impact.
Bridgewater underscored that AI-generated labor increasingly substitutes for human work, yet human labor remains subject to payroll taxes. Proceeds from the proposed token tax could be used to lower these taxes and provide support for workers displaced by AI automation.
Beyond taxation, Jensen advocated for stronger regulatory oversight, recommending that companies controlling significant shares of AI computing power—such as OpenAI and Anthropic, expected to hold 35%-50% of global compute within two years—face heightened scrutiny comparable to that applied to major financial institutions. He acknowledged general skepticism toward government regulation but argued that the scale of AI’s risk demands robust intervention.
Additionally, Bridgewater suggested establishing a specialized division within the Internal Revenue Service to enforce the token tax and proposed that government regulators conduct regular sworn interviews with AI lab personnel to assess safety protocols and emerging risks.
While Bridgewater acknowledged that its own investments could be disproportionately affected by these measures, the firm presented its proposals as necessary steps to ensure the long-term benefits of AI development are broadly shared and safety concerns adequately addressed.