--- aliases: - OSTP - White House Office of Science and Technology Policy category: U.S. Government created: 2026-09-23 location: Washington, D.C. relations: - end: 2022-02 fn: 4 reverse: true role: director and presidential science adviser start: 2021 type: head_of with: '[[Eric Lander]]' - fn: 1 reverse: true role: director start: 2022-09 type: head_of with: '[[Arati Prabhakar]]' - fn: 2 reverse: true role: director; assistant to the president for science and technology start: 2025-03 type: head_of with: '[[Michael Kratsios]]' - fn: 4 reverse: true role: general counsel, later deputy counsel and chief operating officer type: employed_by with: '[[Rachel Wallace]]' - fn: 9 reverse: true role: deputy director for national security start: 2021-03 type: employed_by with: '[[Jason Matheny]]' - fn: 6 reverse: true role: consultant while on the Schmidt Futures payroll start: 2021 type: employed_by with: '[[Tom Kalil]]' - fn: 6 reverse: true role: chief of staff type: employed_by with: '[[Marc Aidinoff]]' - fn: 13 reverse: true role: assistant director for innovation policy type: employed_by with: '[[Daniel Correa]]' summary: White House science and technology office whose directors under Biden and Trump shaped federal AI policy, from Eric Lander's 2022 resignation to Michael Kratsios's 2025 AI Action Plan. tags: - Organization - Government - USA - WhiteHouse - AIPolicy - RevolvingDoor updated: 2026-09-23 --- The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is an office of the [White House](/places/white-house/) whose director advises the president on science and technology. The director, who also carries the title of assistant to the president for science and technology, is confirmed by the Senate.[^1][^2][^3] It is distinct from the [Central Intelligence Agency](/organizations/central-intelligence-agency/)'s former [Office of Science and Technology](/organizations/office-of-science-and-technology/). ### Lander Eric Lander, the geneticist whom President [Joe Biden](/people/joe-biden/) made director and a member of the Cabinet, headed an office of about 140 people. On February 7, 2022, *[Politico](/organizations/politico/)* reported that a two-month White House investigation had found "credible evidence" that Lander had bullied his general counsel, Rachel Wallace, and "credible evidence of disrespectful interactions with staff by Dr. Lander and OSTP leadership." Fourteen current and former OSTP staff described "a toxic work environment." Wallace, a career civil servant who had worked at OSTP under both Obama and [Trump](/people/donald-trump/), had complained in September 2021. As discipline, the White House required Lander to hold more collaborative meetings, such as "brown bag sessions." After learning of the story, Lander wrote to staff: "It's my responsibility to set a respectful tone for our community. It's clear that I have not lived up to this responsibility." Wallace said the apology "did not come close to addressing the full extent of his egregious behavior."[^4] That evening Biden accepted Lander's resignation. Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the president accepted it "with gratitude for his work at OSTP on the pandemic, the Cancer Moonshot, climate change, and other key priorities."[^5] In March 2022 *Politico* reported that [Schmidt Futures](/organizations/schmidt-futures/), the philanthropy of the former Google chief executive [Eric Schmidt](/people/eric-schmidt/), had paid for staff working in the office: its chief innovation officer, Tom Kalil, remained on the Schmidt Futures payroll for four months while serving as an unpaid consultant to OSTP, and the organization indirectly covered the salary of the office's chief of staff, Marc Aidinoff, for about six weeks. Wallace raised ethical concerns about the arrangement. Schmidt called the report "largely false."[^6][^7] ### Prabhakar The Senate confirmed Arati Prabhakar as director on September 22, 2022, by 56 to 40, after invoking cloture the day before by 58 to 38. Ten Republicans voted for her (Senators Blunt, Burr, Cassidy, Collins, Lummis, Moran, Murkowski, Portman, Rounds and Tillis), and one Democrat, Joe Manchin, voted against.[^1] Under Biden the office also published a "Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights," which described the use of automated systems "in ways that threaten the rights of the American public" as "among the great challenges posed to democracy today."[^8] During the same period [Jason Matheny](/people/jason-matheny/), founding director of the [Center for Security and Emerging Technology](/organizations/center-for-security-and-emerging-technology/), served as OSTP's deputy director for national security,[^9] and [Jeff Alstott](/people/jeff-alstott/) of the [RAND Corporation](/organizations/rand-corporation/) as its assistant director for technology competition and risks.[^10] ### Kratsios and the AI Action Plan On March 25, 2025, the Senate confirmed Michael Kratsios of South Carolina as director by 74 to 25, after a cloture vote of 73 to 25; 53 Republicans voted in favor, and all 25 votes against came from Democrats and independents.[^2] The reporter Caleb Ecarma described Kratsios as a former board member of the [Foundation for American Innovation](/organizations/foundation-for-american-innovation/) (FAI), a former chief of staff and principal at Thiel Capital, a former chief financial officer of Clarium Capital Management and a former employee of Scale AI, and wrote that he had interviewed engineers for the Department of Government Efficiency.[^11] In March 2025 FAI's chief economist, Samuel Hammond, answered OSTP's request for comment on the plan, asking the administration to "drive AI adoption within the Federal government," to review federal IT procurement rules and to exempt AI data centers from parts of the National Environmental Policy Act.[^11] On July 23, 2025, the White House released *America's AI Action Plan*, whose cover reads "Winning the Race" and which the White House announced as "Winning the AI Race: America's AI Action Plan." The release said it identified "over 90 Federal policy actions across three pillars." The plan's introduction is signed by three officials: Kratsios, as assistant to the president for science and technology; [David O. Sacks](/people/david-sacks/), special advisor for AI and crypto; and [Marco A. Rubio](/people/marco-rubio/), assistant to the president for national security affairs.[^3][^12] It opens with a statement by Trump that it is "a national security imperative for the United States to achieve and maintain unquestioned and unchallenged global technological dominance," cites Executive Order 14179 of January 23, 2025, "Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence," and states that "President Trump rescinded the Biden Administration's dangerous actions on day one." It quotes Vice President [JD Vance](/people/jd-vance/)'s remark at the Paris AI Action Summit that onerous regulation "would not only unfairly benefit incumbents... it would mean paralyzing one of the most promising technologies we have seen in generations." Among its recommendations is that the National Institute of Standards and Technology revise its AI Risk Management Framework "to eliminate references to misinformation, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and climate change."[^3] Kratsios said in the White House release that the plan "galvanizes Federal efforts to turbocharge our innovation capacity, build cutting-edge infrastructure, and lead globally." Sacks said "we must center American workers and avoid Orwellian uses of AI," and Rubio, then also acting national security adviser, said "Winning the AI Race is non-negotiable."[^12] ### Staff and Alumni Daniel Correa, chief executive of the [Federation of American Scientists](/organizations/federation-of-american-scientists/), was OSTP's assistant director for innovation policy for four years under Obama.[^13] [^1]: U.S. Senate, roll call votes 117th Congress, 2nd session, No. 345 (cloture, September 21, 2022) and No. 348 (confirmation, September 22, 2022), PN2267, Arati Prabhakar. https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1172/vote_117_2_00348.xml [^2]: U.S. Senate, roll call votes 119th Congress, 1st session, No. 138 (cloture) and No. 139 (confirmation), March 25, 2025, PN13-8, Michael Kratsios. https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1191/vote_119_1_00139.xml [^3]: The White House, *America's AI Action Plan*, July 2025. https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Americas-AI-Action-Plan.pdf [^4]: Thompson, Alex. "Biden's top science adviser bullied and demeaned subordinates, according to White House investigation." *Politico,* February 7, 2022, archived October 20, 2025. http://web.archive.org/web/20251020183906/https://www.politico.com/news/2022/02/07/eric-lander-white-house-investigation-00006077 [^5]: "In town pool report #11: News -- Dr. Lander resignation," February 7, 2022, and "Digest of Other White House Announcements," February 7, 2022, The American Presidency Project. https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/pool-reports-february-7-2022 ; https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/digest-other-white-house-announcements-4884 [^6]: Thompson, Alex. "How Eric Schmidt built an expansive AI influence operation." *Politico,* March 28, 2022. https://www.politico.com/news/2022/03/28/google-eric-schmidt-white-house-00020712 [^7]: "Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt says story alleging his foundation indirectly paid White House science staffers is 'largely false.'" CNBC, March 29, 2022. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/29/ex-google-ceo-eric-schmidt-responds-to-white-house-related-allegations.html [^8]: Office of Science and Technology Policy, "Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights," archived White House website. https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/ostp/ai-bill-of-rights/ [^9]: "Jason Matheny to serve Biden White House in national security and tech roles." *FedScoop,* March 9, 2021. https://fedscoop.com/white-house-announces-top-tech-adviser-jason-matheny-national-security/ [^10]: RAND Corporation, "Jeff Alstott," staff profile and publications list, archived September 17, 2026. http://web.archive.org/web/20260917062102/https://www.rand.org/about/people/a/alstott_jeffrey.html [^11]: Ecarma, Caleb. "The little-known think tank pushing Trump to replace the federal workforce with AI." *Oligarch Watch*, September 10, 2025. https://oligarchwatch.substack.com/p/the-little-known-think-tank-pushing [^12]: The White House, "White House Unveils America's AI Action Plan," July 23, 2025. https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/07/white-house-unveils-americas-ai-action-plan/ [^13]: Federation of American Scientists, "Daniel Correa," biography, accessed September 23, 2026. https://fas.org/expert/daniel-correa/