Sam Altman wants to rewrite how society works. Seriously. He isn’t just talking about chatbots or making your emails sound more professional. He’s looking at the fundamental deal between citizens, governments, and corporations. This is the Sam Altman social contract—a vision for a world where "labor" as we know it might actually become obsolete.
It sounds like sci-fi. Maybe it is. But when the guy running OpenAI starts talking about "reconfiguring the structure of society," people tend to listen. Or they get very, very nervous.
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Honestly, the current setup is simple: you work, you get paid, you participate in the economy. Altman argues that AI is about to break that. If an AI can do 90% of the tasks we currently call "jobs," the old contract—labor for survival—basically collapses. So, what replaces it?
The Three Pillars of Altman's New Deal
You can't just flip a switch and change how the world runs. Altman’s proposal isn't a single document, but a collection of ideas he’s been vocalizing at places like the AI for Good Global Summit and on his own blog. It’s a mix of radical economics and digital identity.
1. Universal Basic Income (and "AI Tokens")
Altman has been obsessed with Universal Basic Income (UBI) for years. He even funded one of the largest UBI studies through OpenResearch. But lately, the idea has evolved. He’s floated the concept of giving people "slices" of future AI systems. Imagine instead of a check, you get "compute" or "AI tokens."
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It’s a weird thought. You own a piece of the world’s intelligence. You can use it to start a business, or you can trade it for someone else's resources. In this version of the Sam Altman social contract, wealth isn't just cash in a bank; it's access to the "superintelligence" that drives the economy.
2. Worldcoin and the "Proof of Personhood"
How do you give everyone a share of the pie if you can't tell who is human? This is the darker, more "dystopian" side of the plan. Worldcoin—Altman’s other massive project—uses "Orbs" to scan your iris.
The goal? To create a World ID.
In a world flooded with AI deepfakes and bots, Altman argues we need a digital passport to prove we’re real. Without it, a UBI system would be gamed by bots in seconds. Critics call it a privacy nightmare. Altman calls it the "infrastructure of the real." He thinks it's the only way to ensure the benefits of AI actually go to humans.
3. "American Equity" and Wealth Redistribution
In his essay Moore’s Law for Everything, Altman suggested a "tax on capital" rather than just income. He proposed an American Equity Fund. Basically, we tax companies (like OpenAI) and land, and then redistribute that wealth to every citizen.
He’s betting that AI will make the world so rich that we can finally afford to eliminate poverty. It’s a "floor with no ceiling" approach. You get enough to survive, but you’re free to go do whatever you want—art, science, or just hanging out.
Why People Are Actually Terrified
Not everyone is buying the "utopia" vibes. Critics like those at The Wire point out that this "new social contract" is being written by the same people who are breaking the old one. There’s a massive power imbalance here.
If Silicon Valley controls the AI, and the AI controls the wealth, then the "social contract" looks more like a subscription service where the users have no leverage.
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The Labor Problem
In the old world, workers had power because they could strike. They could withhold their labor. If AI does the labor, what's our leverage? If the Sam Altman social contract is just "here is some money, please don't complain about the AI," it’s not really a contract. It's a handout.
The Exclusion Risk
There’s also the "geography of prejudice." Most of these ideas are very Western-centric. If you’re in a country with no access to the high-speed data centers required for "superintelligence," do you just get left out of the new contract?
The 2030s "Event Horizon"
Altman thinks we’ve already crossed the event horizon. He’s predicted that by the 2030s, "intelligence and energy" will be wildly abundant. He uses an airplane analogy: we are currently designing the plane while it’s in the air. We have to make it safe, but we also have to make it fly.
He acknowledges the "bitter parts." Whole classes of jobs will disappear. He’s not sugarcoating that. But he argues that we’ll find new things to care about because humans are "hard-wired to care about other people." We don't care about machines; we care about what our friends think. That, he says, is our permanent advantage.
Practical Steps for a Post-Labor World
We aren't there yet, but the "gradual changes" are already happening. If you're trying to navigate this shift, you can't just wait for a UBI check to show up in your inbox.
- Focus on High-Agency Work: The Sam Altman social contract assumes "routine" tasks are gone. Double down on things that require deep human empathy, complex negotiation, or physical presence.
- Understand Digital Identity: Whether you like it or not, "Proof of Personhood" is becoming a thing. Watch how platforms handle bot-detection. Your "human-ness" is becoming a premium asset.
- Follow the OpenResearch Data: Don't just listen to the hype. Look at the actual results of the UBI trials. They show how people actually spend money when their basic needs are met. It’s usually on health, education, and starting small businesses—not just sitting on the couch.
- Advocate for Governance: Don't let tech CEOs be the only ones writing the rules. Support policies that demand transparency in how AI wealth is distributed.
The social contract isn't something that just happens to us. It’s an agreement. If Sam Altman is bringing a new draft to the table, it’s up to the rest of society to decide if the terms are actually fair. We are moving toward a "super-exponential" increase in value, but if that value isn't shared, the contract isn't worth the digital paper it's written on.