David Sacks, the venture capitalist who served as President Trump’s Special Advisor on AI and Crypto, has officially left the role. As The Verge AI reports, Sacks revealed during a Bloomberg Television interview on Thursday that he’d “used up” his 130-day limit as a special government employee, a cap that many had already questioned, given he’d held the position for over a year.
Sacks isn’t leaving the White House orbit entirely. He’s shifting to co-chair the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), alongside Michael Kratsios, the head of the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy. The advisory council recently added heavy hitters like Mark Zuckerberg, Marc Andreessen, Jensen Huang, and Sergey Brin.
But there’s a key difference: PCAST is an advisory body, not an operational one. Sacks himself clarified that his new role won’t involve coordinating with federal agencies. “It’s intended to be advice to the president and to the White House,” he told Bloomberg. That’s a significant downgrade from having direct Oval Office access and shaping technology policy in real time.
Why this matters for the AI industry
Sacks was the single most influential voice on AI policy inside the Trump administration. He pushed hard for federal preemption of state AI laws, essentially trying to block states from passing their own AI regulations. That effort failed, and according to The Verge AI, it backfired politically. His approach alienated Republican governors and populist allies within the MAGA movement.
Michael Toscano, executive director of the conservative Institute for Family Studies, didn’t hold back:
He failed to get preemption. He pressed the White House into a culture war against its own voters. He kept it from getting simple wins like child safety. He has been a political disaster.
There’s also the timing. Last week, Sacks publicly criticized Trump on his podcast All In, suggesting the president needed an “off-ramp” from the conflict with Iran. In Trumpworld, that’s rarely forgiven. The Verge AI notes a pattern during Trump’s second term: controversial figures get reassigned rather than fired. Mike Waltz went from National Security Advisor to U.N. Ambassador after Signal-gate. Kristi Noem moved from Homeland Security to a special envoy role.
What comes next
The practical question for AI companies and developers: who actually drives AI policy now? With Sacks in an advisory-only role, Kratsios and the broader PCAST council become the main channels of tech industry influence. But an advisory council with Zuckerberg, Andreessen, Huang, and Brin on it is less a neutral body and more a who’s-who of Big Tech leadership with massive AI investments.
The failed push for blanket preemption of state AI laws means the regulatory landscape stays fragmented. States will continue passing their own rules, and companies will keep navigating a patchwork of requirements. Anyone hoping for a single federal framework just lost their strongest advocate inside the West Wing.
For a deeper look at Sacks’ tenure and the political dynamics behind his departure, check out the full report from The Verge AI.