Michael Kratsios and Mark Meador on Feb. 25. Photo: Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday advanced Michael Kratsios' nomination to lead OSTP and Mark Meador to be a FTC commissioner.
Why it matters: If confirmed, Kratsios will advise President Trump and work with AI and crypto czar David Sacks on tech regulation and policy.
- Meador, if confirmed, would fill the third Republican seat on the FTC.
Driving the news: Senators voted 24-4 for Kratsios and 20-8 for Meador during today's executive session.
At the nominations hearing last month, Kratsios told senators it's "common sense" to evaluate agencies for possible DOGE cuts and deferred to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick when asked to make commitments to honor existing CHIPS and Science Act agreements.
- Meador during his testimony did not commit to continuing or shutting down any ongoing competition inquiries and cases and said the FTC would be looking into Big Tech censorship.
Catch up quick: Kratsios, managing director at Scale AI, was chief technology officer during Trump's first term and comes from tech billionaire Peter Thiel's world.
- Meador is a longtime government antitrust lawyer who's worked for DOJ, FTC and Sen. Mike Lee.
What's next: Kratsios' and Meador's respective nominations now head to the full Senate for a vote.
