President Trump announced that he was bringing David Sacks to be the first “White House A.I. and Crypto Czar”.
In a statement, President Trump shared:
I am pleased to announce that David O. Sacks will be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar.” In this important role, David will guide policy for the Administration in Artificial Intelligence and Cryptocurrency, two areas critical to the future of American competitiveness. David will focus on making America the clear global leader in both areas. He will safeguard Free Speech online, and steer us away from Big Tech bias and censorship. He will work on a legal framework so the Crypto industry has the clarity it has been asking for, and can thrive in the U.S. David will also lead the Presidential Council of Advisors for Science and Technology.
David Sacks has been an extremely successful entrepreneur and investor for 25 years, building and investing in some of the most iconic companies in Silicon Valley. He was PayPal’s founding-era COO, part of the legendary “PayPal Mafia.” David then founded enterprise software company, Yammer, which was acquired by Microsoft for $1.2 Billion Dollars. Subsequently he founded Craft Ventures, a venture capital firm based in San Francisco. David is co-host of the All-In Podcast, the top podcast in Tech, where he and his friends discuss economic, political and social issues.
David has the knowledge, business experience, intelligence, and pragmatism to MAKE AMERICA GREAT in these two critical technologies. Congratulations, David!
The New York Times reports on the move:
President-elect Donald J. Trump has named one of Silicon Valley’s most prominent conservative investors, donors and media personalities to help oversee American tech policy.
David Sacks, a venture capitalist and an early executive at PayPal who launched a hit podcast, will be the “White House A.I. and Crypto Czar,” the president-elect announced in a social media post on Thursday. Mr. Sacks is a close friend of Elon Musk, and Mr. Sacks has been among the people over the last year or so encouraging Mr. Musk to delve deeper into Republican politics.
The position will be new, and further cements the expectation that the Trump White House intends to take a lighter hand with the regulation of technology and in particular cryptocurrencies, which have surged in value since Mr. Trump won the election and in which Mr. Trump personally has a business interest. Mr. Sacks, who leads a venture capital firm called Craft Ventures, has in general called for a more permissive policy on both cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence.
Mr. Sacks won a battle within the Trump transition effort. Some people were pitching Mr. Trump’s team on separate positions where different people would oversee artificial intelligence and crypto, according to a person close to the process. But Mr. Sacks was chosen to oversee them all together in a joint appointment.