A foundation controlled by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has been allowed "an unusual level of influence" on the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy according to a March 28 Politico report.
Emails from current and former office employees reveal that over a dozen employees of the Office of Science and Technology Policy have been associates of Mr. Schmidt and that Mr. Schmidt's charity arm indirectly paid the salaries of two science office employees. Under the former science advisor, Eric Lander, the office had tried to arrange for Mr. Schmidt's foundation to pay for the salaries of some staff, causing significant ethical concerns according to the former general counsel.
Mr. Schmidt has a special interest in artificial intelligence technologies and sits on the board of various related companies, including AI defense company Rebellion Defense, is chair of Sandbox AQ, an AI and quantum tech company, as well as Civis Analytics, a data science company that has helped Democratic campaigns.
The White House told Politico that there was nothing unusual about its ties to Mr. Schmidt and that all ethical issues were handled.
Read the full report here.