Sriram Krishnan is leaving his role as White House AI advisor
Quick Answer
Sriram Krishnan is stepping down as White House AI advisor to establish a new institution focused on shaping AI policy under Trump's influence.
Quick Take
His departure marks a significant shift in the administration's approach to AI governance, potentially impacting future AI regulations and initiatives.
Key Points
- Krishnan is leaving his role to start a new institution.
- The new institution aims to influence AI policy under Trump.
- His exit may lead to changes in AI governance strategies.
- This shift could impact future AI regulations and initiatives.
📖 Reader Mode
~2 min readFormer tech executive and VC Sriram Krishnan is leaving the Trump administration at the end of June.
“It is hard to express how big a privilege it has been to serve the American people and how grateful I am to have had the opportunity to do so,” Krishnan said in a post on X. “First and foremost, it has been an honor to serve under President [Donald Trump]. Without his leadership, we would not be leading in the AI race.”
Krishnan, who’s been serving as a senior policy advisor on artificial intelligence at the White House, was one of a number of tech industry figures to take roles in the second Trump administration. Krishnan has led product teams at Microsoft, Twitter, Yahoo, Facebook, and Snap, and he was most recently a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, a firm whose founders threw their support behind Trump during the 2024 election.
In his post, Krishnan highlighted some “key public accomplishments,” starting with the administration’s AI Action Plan, which prioritized data center construction over regulation and safety. Since then, Trump has signed several executive orders around AI, including one that seeks to challenge state-level AI regulations and another focused on oversight that was delayed and narrowed after industry pushback.
Trump has also endorsed the idea that the government could take an equity stake in major AI companies.
Krishnan noted that the person he “worked [most] closely with over the last 18 months” was David Sacks, the investor and podcaster who stepped down as AI and crypto czar earlier this year and became co-chair of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
“[Sacks’] continuing advocacy for America winning on AI has been and continues to be crucial,” Krishnan said.
Next, Krishnan said he will be “building institutions” that tackle big challenges for “America and its allies.” According to The Washington Post, he’s planning to start an outside institution that will still give him a role in influencing Trump’s AI policy.
“Whether it is energy, data centers or a clear path for Americans to experience the benefits of AI, there are many tough issues we all need to navigate together,” Krishnan said.
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Anthony Ha is TechCrunch’s weekend editor. Previously, he worked as a tech reporter at Adweek, a senior editor at VentureBeat, a local government reporter at the Hollister Free Lance, and vice president of content at a VC firm. He lives in New York City.
You can contact or verify outreach from Anthony by emailing anthony.ha@techcrunch.com.
— Originally published at techcrunch.com
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