{
  "id": 1455062,
  "title": "OpenAI funds new think tank projects",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/17/openai-funds-new-think-tank-projects",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-08-17T08:40:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Semafor",
    "slug": "semafor",
    "url": "https://www.semafor.com/article/08/17/2026/openai-funds-new-think-tank-projects"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "OpenAI has announced the recipients of its grant proposals aimed at studying the economic and societal impact of artificial intelligence and developing solutions to mitigate disruptions. The recipients comprise US-based organizations from various political spectrums, such as the American Enterprise Institute, the Progressive Policy Institute, the Tax Foundation, and the Nuclear Threat Initiative, along with entities in Europe, Brazil, Singapore, and South Korea. The 14 projects, selected from proposals submitted earlier this year, will collectively receive $1 million in funding, complemented by up to $1 million in credits to utilize OpenAI’s models.\n\nChris Lehane, OpenAI’s chief global affairs officer, emphasized the importance of ambitious and transformative policy ideas as the technology progresses. He stated that democracies must decide how AI is deployed, and organizations like these can act as laboratories of democracy, devising new ways to ensure AI’s gains benefit the many, not just the few.\n\nThe funded projects will focus on promoting economic opportunity and societal resilience in the age of AI. For instance, the American Enterprise Institute, in collaboration with the liberal Urban Institute, will explore AI’s effect on the American workforce, while the Progressive Policy Institute plans to develop a new \"person-based benefits system\" tailored for the AI economy.",
  "summary": "Recipients include US-based organizations across the political spectrum, as well as organizations in Europe, Brazil, Singapore, and South Korea.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}