President-elect Donald Trump announced on his social media platform, Truth Social, the appointment of David Sacks, a venture capitalist and prominent Silicon Valley figure, as the White House"s first AI and crypto czar. Sacks will serve in this newly created position, which reflects Donald Trump"s ambition to bolster America"s leadership in AI and cryptocurrency advancements.
In a post on Truth, Trump said, "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." Trump also added that Sacks would also lead the Presidential Council of Advisors for Science and Technology.
Sacks is the former COO of PayPal and is also famed as a part of the "PayPal Mafia." He played a key role in Trump"s fundraising campaigns, including co-hosting an event at his San Francisco home, with tickets costing $300,000 a head. A close ally of Vice President-elect JD Vance, Sacks also founded "Yammer," a workspace communication platform, which was acquired by Microsoft for $1.2 billion in 2012.
His venture capital firm, Craft Ventures, has investments in major companies like Elon Musk"s SpaceX, Reddit, and ClickUp. In one of his "All-In" podcasts, Sacks mentioned that his contractual obligations with Craft Ventures may prevent him from taking a full-time government position. Still, he could take up an advisory role in Trump"s administration. Trump expressed confidence in Sacks"s ability to "safeguard Free Speech online, and also counter "Big Tech bias and censorship."
While the precise scope of this new "czar" role remains unclear, the move clearly shows Trump"s admin will put a high priority on AI and cryptocurrency to bolster the US economy.
Source: Bloomberg