Trump’s AI and crypto czar will be David Sacks, a venture capitalist and ally of Elon Musk

President-elect Donald Trump has appointed David Sacks as the White House’s artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency czar, giving the venture capitalist and vocal Republican donor influence over his administration’s policies.

“David will focus on making America the clear global leader in both areas. He will protect free speech online and keep us away from the bias and censorship of Big Tech,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Thursday evening. “He will work on a legal framework so that the crypto industry gets the clarity it demands and can thrive in the US.”

The “PayPal (PYPL) Mafia” member rose to fame as the payments company’s chief operating officer, working with Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk and Palantir (PLTR) co-founder Peter Thiel. He later founded Yammer (MSFT), which was acquired by Microsoft, and briefly ran human resources management company Zenefits.

In 2017, he founded Craft Ventures, which invests in a number of companies working in AI and crypto, as well as some linked to his allies. His investments include Palantir, Musk’s Neuralink, xAI, X, The Boring Company and SpaceX, as well as Airbnb (ABNB), Uber (UBER) and Meta (META).

Sacks also hosts the influential business and tech podcast “All-in” with industry leaders Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis and David Friedberg. Although Sacks has since become a Trump supporter, he donated to rival and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016. In 2023, he hosted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s flawed presidential campaign launch on X and gave the Trump rival at least $50,000

In June, Sacks hosted a fundraiser for Trump in Silicon Valley that raised $12 million for his campaign. He also hosted Trump on the All In podcast and repeatedly appealed to voters, including in the form of an essay in which he laid out his views and cited immigration issues, the Russia-Ukraine war and inflation as reasons not to vote for President Joe to vote for Biden. Who was the Democratic candidate back then? The following month, he made the case for Trump at the Republican National Convention.

“I am honored and grateful for the trust you have placed in me,” Sacks wrote in response to Trump on Truth Social. “I look forward to advancing American competitiveness in these critical technologies. Under your leadership, the future is bright!”

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