Harris arrives at the AI Safety Summit in Bletchley Park on Nov. 2, 2023 in Bletchley, England. Photo: Toby Melville - WPA Pool/Getty Images
We're taking a look at the potential advisers that could help shape tech policy under a Kamala Harris presidency.
Why it matters: Harris is likely to carry out many parts of President Biden's tech agenda, but will have her own stamp to put on areas like AI and social media policy given her background.
- As California attorney general, Harris went after sexual exploitation online, and as VP she played a major role in the administration's rollout of the AI executive order.
Here are some names to watch:
Ami Fields-Meyer
- Fields-Meyer left his position as senior policy adviser to Harris this spring, where he played a key role in AI policy, including on civil liberties, deepfakes and consumer protection.
- Prior to that, he worked at OSTP.
Ike Irby
- Irby advised Harris on climate in the Senate for many years and now works as a senior campaign adviser to Harris, but sources tell Axios he is influential on domestic policy for Harris broadly.
- He first worked for Harris in the Senate as a science and technology fellow, and prior to that, in 2014 for the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, per his LinkedIn.
Alondra Nelson
- Nelson was the first woman of color to lead the White House OSTP Science and Society team and crafted the AI Bill of Rights. She stepped down in Feb. 2023 but continues to work on AI policy internationally and in Washington.
- Nelson has gone after Trump's plan to repeal the Biden administration's AI executive order, saying it would leave Americans on their own in cases of Big Tech squeezing out small businesses or if health care is denied because of an AI system's decision.
- Compared to Biden and his predecessors, Nelson told Axios that Harris "has a critical familiarity with Silicon Valley" and would be "the only president who really understands that ecosystem of science and technology and innovation at a visceral level."
Rafi Martina
- Martina is Sen. Mark Warner's senior policy advisor on technology, telecom and consumer protection issues.
- He is also principal cybersecurity advisor on the Intelligence Committee, positioning him well for tech policy as it increasingly intersects with national security issues.
Chirag Parikh
- Parikh joined the Biden-Harris administration from Microsoft Azure to serve as National Space Council executive secretary, where he advises Harris on her role as chair to develop policies.
- Harris has priorities around using AI to analyze data from NASA to understand climate change and has focused on STEM education and innovation in the commercial space industry.
Quincy Brown
- Brown is National Space Council director of space STEM and workforce policy.
Rohini Kosoglu
- Rohini Kosoglu is a former domestic policy adviser to Harris, now serving as a policy fellow at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence and a venture partner at technology-and-health care focused Fusion Fund.
- Kosoglu worked on CHIPS and AI at the White House and for Harris in the Senate.
Alexandra Reeve Givens
- Currently president and CEO of the Center for Democracy and Technology, Givens has played a major role in influencing AI and tech policy in the Biden administration.
- She's served as a go-between of sorts between the government and civil society fighting for civil rights protections in tech policy and could be poised to take on a role in a Harris administration or maintain outside influence.
