Block reckless AI IPOs and tax billionaires to protect America’s future

As America grapples with economic division and crisis, Naomi Klein and Ilana Glazer argue that the billionaire class is taking unprecedented risks with the country’s future. Despite a sunny economic forecast from the Trump administration, millions of Americans struggle to find and keep jobs, face rising living costs, and lose health insurance when they need it most. Meanwhile, billionaire wealth has surged by 40% in just two years, with nearly 3,000 global billionaires now holding combined wealth equal to one-fifth of the world’s yearly output. Nearly 1,000 of those billionaires live and do business in the United States, fueling corporate consolidation and political corruption. The authors call for blocking reckless AI IPOs and taxing billionaires to curb their influence and redirect resources toward working families. This matters because unchecked billionaire power not only widens inequality but also allows a tiny elite to gamble with technologies that could reshape society. The time to act is now, before the risks become irreversible.