David Sacks selling stakes in xAI, Meta and other AI companies
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David Sacks, the venture capitalist advising President Trump on crypto and AI policy, is apparently divesting his holdings in foundational AI companies and hyperscalers like xAI and Meta, according to a White House memo posted online Friday.
- The White House previously disclosed that Sacks and his firm, Craft Ventures, divested around $200 million of crypto-related assets.
Why it matters: Sacks entered the Trump administration with a slew of investments that could have created conflicts of interest, or at least perceptions of them, but has taken steps to minimize that risk.
Zoom in: The memo appears to have been written months ago, since it refers to March 31 as a future date.
- It says that Sacks was required to sell stock in such publicly traded companies as Amazon and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by the end of Q1, and was set to divest his Meta shares by the end of this month (at the latest).
- Craft Ventures sold stakes in ten AI companies. This includes xAI — which is listed as a "pending" divestiture in the memo, but a firm spokesperson says the deal is done.
- He and Craft are retaining positions in dozens of SaaS and hardware startups, some of which either already use AI or are expected to.
The intrigue: The memo was posted publicly Friday afternoon, removed a short time later, and then re-posted.
- White House spokespeople were not immediately available to comment.
The bottom line: Both this memo and the earlier one focused on crypto are waivers that let Sacks continue working as a special government employee.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional details on the memo, which can be viewed below:
