OpenAI CEO Sam Altman acknowledged on Thursday that soaring costs of compute and memory are "definitely a headwind" for the company's rapid expansion. In an interview with CNBC, Altman addressed mounting infrastructure costs but also announced the company's newest AI model boasts a 54% leap in token efficiency tailored for agentic coding. Altman confirmed that Microsoft will remain one of OpenAI's largest and most critical customers. He pushed back sharply on rumors of a potential U.S. government equity stake, stating "There are a lot of inaccuracies there" and explicitly dismissing reports of a rumored 5% government stake. Altman noted that OpenAI has implemented "many changes" following discussions with Washington and expressed optimism for a "smoother" collaborative process. When asked about a potential 2026 initial public offering, Altman replied, "I don't know." On geopolitical competition, Altman warned that Chinese open-source AI models are getting "very good."