Remember when the government’s idea of picking winners was choosing which defense contractor got the next overpriced toilet seat contract? Well, plot twist: Uncle Sam just discovered Silicon Valley and decided to become the world’s most powerful venture capitalist.
While everyone’s obsessing over Nvidia’s earnings and whether AI is in a bubble, something way more interesting is happening in Washington. The feds aren’t just throwing money at AI companies anymore—they’re literally buying chunks of them. And honestly? It’s working better than most hedge funds.
Here’s the tea: The government has quietly launched what’s basically a Manhattan Project for AI, except instead of building bombs, they’re building portfolios. They’ve taken a 15% stake in MP Materials (rare earth mining), nearly 10% of Intel, and they’re just getting started.
The results? These government-blessed companies are absolutely crushing it:
- Intel: up 77% this year
- MP Materials: rocketed 276%
- Lithium Americas: up 50%
- Trilogy Metals: up 204%
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 is sitting pretty at a modest 13% gain. Turns out when Uncle Sam picks your stock, the market pays attention.
This isn’t your typical government subsidy program where they throw money at problems and hope something sticks. This is strategic equity investing with a national security twist. The White House looked at America’s tech supply chain, identified the chokepoints, and decided to become the ultimate insider investor.
Think about it: China controls rare earth minerals, Taiwan makes our chips, and we’re supposed to lead the AI revolution? Washington finally did the math and realized they needed skin in the game, not just speeches about innovation.
The pattern is pretty simple once you see it. The government picks companies in three categories: Right Industry (AI, semiconductors, critical minerals), Right Company (clear market leaders), and Right Connections (U.S. operations, D.C. relationships). Check all three boxes, and you might just win the federal lottery.
MP Materials is the perfect example. They run America’s only major rare earth mine in California—exactly what you need when you’re trying to break China’s stranglehold on materials that go into everything from fighter jets to iPhones. When the Pentagon announced their $400 million investment, the stock tripled.
The crazy part? Most Wall Street analysts are still treating these as isolated incidents. They see Intel getting government backing and think “interesting policy move.” They’re missing the forest for the trees.
This is the new playbook. Washington has published its roadmap of strategic priorities, allocated massive capital, and started picking winners. The old rules of following Silicon Valley VCs are getting rewritten by federal agencies with trillion-dollar budgets.
For investors, this creates a fascinating opportunity. If you can identify which companies are next on Washington’s shopping list—before the announcements hit—you’re essentially front-running the world’s most powerful venture fund.
The AI boom isn’t just about technology anymore. It’s about geopolitics, national security, and good old-fashioned government intervention. And if you’re not paying attention to what’s happening in D.C., you’re missing the biggest wealth creation opportunity since the early internet.
Welcome to the era where your best investment tip might come from a Pentagon press release.