Michael Kratsios, deputy director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), will become the Trump Administration’s first U.S. Chief Technology Officer, following Senate confirmation of his nomination on an August 1 unanimous voice vote.
Kratsios will take on the role as the fourth person to hold the U.S. CTO office, and the first to be confirmed by the Senate. The role had been vacant since President Trump took office.
The Federal technology sphere is no stranger to Kratsios. He has been a prominent public figure for OSTP, convening technology companies in December 2018 for a listening session, developing the memo on Federal research and development priorities, and commenting on the State of the Union speech for OSTP.
Kratsios’ confirmation was met with praise by multiple groups, including BSA | The Software Alliance, the Consumer Technology Association, and the Internet Association.