Elon Musk Picked by Trump to Lead Government Efficiency Dept.

President-Elect Donald Trump announced on Tuesday on X that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will head a newly formed department, the Department of Government Efficiency. 

Saying the decision is essential to the Save America movement, Trump said it will essentially be the “‘Manhattan Project’ of our time.”

“Together these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures and restructure federal agencies – essential to the Save America movement,” Trump said in a statement. 

Trump said the Department of Government Efficiency will offer advice and guidance from external sources and collaborate with the White House and the Office of Management and Budget to implement major structural reforms and introduce a new, entrepreneurial approach to government.

The announcement comes one day after the group Americans for Responsible Innovation (ARI) launched a campaign urging Trump to appoint Musk as a special advisor to the president on AI. ARI is calling for this new position that Musk could lead to help shape federal strategy on artificial intelligence. 

ARI launched a petition to gather signatures advocating for the appointment. 

“There’s no one better positioned to help the Trump Administration navigate this new technology,” said Satya Thallam, ARI senior vice president of government affairs. “This is someone who has both pioneered AI advancement and consistently sounded the alarm about AI’s potential risks. Musk knows what it’s going to take to make America lead on safe AI.”

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