Zenefits CEO David Sacks speaks at the TechCrunch Disrupt conference in San Francisco, California.
Paul Chin | San Francisco Chronicle | Hearst Newspapers (via Getty Images)
Venture investor and podcaster David Sachs will join the Trump administration as the “White House AI and Cryptocurrency Czar,” President-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday on Truth Social.
President Trump wrote that Sachs will guide the administration’s policy on artificial intelligence and cryptocurrencies. Some of its efforts include creating a legal framework for cryptocurrencies and leading the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
“David will focus on making America the clear world leader in both areas,” Trump wrote. “He will protect free speech online and keep us away from Big Tech’s bigotry and censorship.”
The appointment suggests that the second Trump administration is rewarding Silicon Valley figures who helped his campaign. It also suggests that the administration will pursue policies that crypto entrepreneurs generally support.
Mr. Sacks became a major supporter of Mr. Trump earlier this year, hosting a fundraiser for the then-Republican candidate at his San Francisco mansion. Tickets were sold for $50,000 per person, with a $300,000 tier that included perks such as a photo with President Trump.
It was a stark change of tone for Sachs, who had been sharply critical of Trump after the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Sachs said shortly afterwards on an episode of his All-In podcast that Trump was “clearly” responsible for what happened. And he said he was “disqualified from being a candidate at the national level.”
In July, Mr. Sachs spoke at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
Sachs is a venture capitalist and entrepreneur who sold Yammer to Microsoft for $1.2 billion in 2012. He is also a member of the PayPal Mafia, an informal club of prominent technology figures and investors, including former PayPal employees Elon Musk and Peter Thiel. In the 1990s.
In recent years, Sachs has been best known as the host of the All In podcast with fellow investors Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Karakanis and David Friedberg. In his post, Trump called the show “the top podcast in tech to discuss economics, politics, and social issues with friends.”
