Sam Altman-Backed Study Bolsters Support for Basic Income

Over the past several years, the idea of direct cash transfers to low-income Americans has gained fast traction, with more than 150 local pilots in 35 US states testing the idea of “basic income.” The largest of those pilots didn’t come from a city or county but from OpenResearch, a project backed by OpenAI Chief Executive Officer and Founder Sam Altman.

After three years of distributing $1,000 monthly to beneficiaries in Illinois and Texas, the organization has released a trio of research papers on its findings. Like many of the other studies released before it, OpenResearch finds that recipients spend more ...