President Donald Trump recently announced his nomination of Michael Kratsios ’08 to serve as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the United States, filling a seat that has been vacant since the Obama administration.
Kratsios did not respond to a request for comment from The Daily Princetonian.
Initially created by Barack Obama in 2009, the CTO role is part of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and focuses on using data and technology to inform effective policy. The appointment comes on the heels of the confirmation of Kelvin Droegemeier as Director of the OSTP.
If Kratsios is confirmed, Trump would have both a science adviser and a technology advisor.
Kratsios studied politics at the University and worked in venture capital upon graduation. He later became Chief of Staff at Thiel Capital before joining Trump’s transition team in 2016 and later joining the Trump administration as Deputy CTO in 2017.
Ed Felten, the University’s Robert E. Kahn Professor of Computer Science and Public Policy, served as Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer for the Obama administration from May 2015 to January 2017.
Felten did not immediately respond to a request for comment by the ‘Prince.’
Aneesh Chopra, who was appointed the first CTO by Obama and served from May 2009 to February 2012, said in an interview with The Hill that he is generally positive about Trump’s nomination.
“I’ve had no conversations with him that make me think he’s partisan,” Chopra said.
Jerry Wei GS ’19, a computer science researcher in the Center for Information Technology Policy, shared similar sentiments.
“Having a CTO focused on tech policy and ties to private industry could help the United States remain an innovative leader in technology,” Wei said.
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