Trump’s Bold Move: Ex-PayPal Star David Sacks to Lead AI and Crypto!
(Reuters) – Big news coming out of the White House! U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has just announced the appointment of former PayPal Chief Operating Officer David Sacks as his brand-new “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar.” This is a bold move aimed at revolutionizing U.S. policy and ensuring that America leads the charge in the world of cryptocurrency!
In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump emphasized that Sacks will be spearheading efforts to create a legal framework that provides the clarity the crypto industry has long sought. This clarity is essential for the thriving of cryptocurrencies right here in the U.S. — a game-changer for investors and innovators alike!
With Sacks at the helm, alongside key figures like the chairs of the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, we can anticipate a significant transformation in U.S. digital currency policy. The newly formed crypto advisory council is set to pave the way for a future where crypto flourishes!
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Trump’s tech supporters are thrilled over this direction, advocating for minimal regulation on artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency. They argue that too much red tape would stifle these burgeoning industries, which are ripe for innovation and investment.
Elad Gil, a notable entrepreneur with stakes in companies like Airbnb and the crypto platform Coinbase, praised Sacks’ selection as a “strong move” on X. Meanwhile, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also chimed in with excitement, congratulating Sacks on this pivotal appointment!
According to Steve Jang, founder of Kindred Ventures and an investor alongside Sacks in various crypto and AI startups, we can expect Sacks to adopt a light regulatory touch. However, he’s likely to implement necessary guardrails to ensure responsible growth.
Jang predicts that Sacks will focus on regulating the application of AI in critical areas rather than on the development of AI technologies themselves, a hot topic that stirred debate among Silicon Valley investors during California’s failed SB 1047 bill.
In a prior announcement, Trump nominated Paul Atkins, a well-known Washington lawyer and crypto advocate, to lead the SEC, a decision that has been warmly welcomed by the crypto community.
Once a skeptic who labeled crypto a scam, Trump has since embraced digital assets during his campaign, vowing to position the United States as the “crypto capital of the planet” and even aiming to create a national stockpile of bitcoin!
In fact, bitcoin broke the $100,000 barrier for the first time just last night, a significant milestone celebrated even by skeptics, as investors anticipate a supportive U.S. administration that will solidify the role of cryptocurrencies in financial markets.
Matthew Dibb, the chief investment officer at Astronaut Capital, described this appointment as extremely bullish for the crypto landscape. “David has had practical experience with cryptocurrencies over the years, showing a greater understanding of the space than many realize,” he noted.
Originally from South Africa, Sacks, 52, is a co-founder of Craft Ventures and played a crucial role in the early days of PayPal, which was acquired by eBay back in 2002.
Sacks is often associated with the “PayPal Mafia,” an influential network of former PayPal employees and executives that includes notable Trump supporters like Peter Thiel and Elon Musk.
Speaking of Musk, the Tesla CEO and xAI leader is also a staunch crypto advocate and has been appointed by Trump as co-lead of the new Department of Government Efficiency, cheekily nicknamed DOGE after the popular cryptocurrency!
Sacks’ impressive resume also includes a stint as the CEO of software company Zenefits and the founding of Yammer, a social network designed for professional users.
He has long championed cryptocurrencies, famously stating in a 2017 CNBC interview that the rise of bitcoin was nothing short of revolutionary for the internet.
“We’re witnessing the dawn of a new kind of web—some call it the decentralized web or the internet of money,” he proclaimed.
In addition to his crypto responsibilities, Trump has tasked Sacks with leading a White House advisory council focusing on science and technology.
(Reporting by Costas Pitas; Additional reporting by Michelle Price, Tom Westbrook, Alexandra Ulmer, and Peter Henderson; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Christopher Cushing)
