- Donald Trump has tapped Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the Department of Government Efficiency.
- The advisory group is aimed at reducing federal spending and cutting waste.
- Several notable tech figures have already been linked to DOGE.
Donald Trump has picked Elon Musk and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE — and they appear to be tapping into their network of Silicon Valley contacts to make it happen.
The department is set to be an advisory group outside the Trump administration that will seek out ways to cut costs and curb federal spending.
Although Musk has said he wants to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget to make it more efficient, under current law, Congress must approve most budget changes, which limits DOGE's power.
Musk has already reportedly been consulting Silicon Valley leaders about the advisory group. These are the tech figures that have already been linked to DOGE.
Vivek Ramaswamy
Vivek Ramaswamy campaigned for Trump.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Ramaswamy is set to spearhead the DOGE alongside Musk.
The biotech billionairepreviously ran for president, launching his bid in February 2023. He laterdropped out to support Trump and campaigned for the former president.
Ramaswamy has said DOGE will be "crowdsourcing examples of government waste, fraud, and abuse.
"Americans voted for drastic government reform & they deserve to be part of fixing it," he wrote in a post on X.
Marc Andreessen
Marc Andreessen has criticized the "raw administrative power" of independent federal agencies like the SEC, FTC, and CFPB.
Steve Jennings/Getty
The Washington Post reported that the Andreessen Horowitz cofounder has been involved in helping Musk plan the department. Andreessen also discussed Musk and DOGE on a recent episode of Joe Rogan's podcast.
On the podcast, he criticized the "raw administrative power" of independent federal agencies like the SEC, FTC, and CFPB, highlighting Musk's direct business approach as a model for government accountability.
Sriram Krishnan
Sriram Krishnan is reportedly considering joining Musk at DOGE.
YouTube
Sriram Krishnan, a general partner at A16z, has had discussions with Elon Musk about joining DOGE, The Information reported.
Krishnan has a history with Musk, assisting him in the early stage of his Twitter takeover. He's also previously held roles within Big Tech companies, including Twitter, Snap, and Meta.
Krishnan confirmed in an X post on Wednesday that he will be leaving A16z at the end of the year.
"What's next? I'll have more on that in a bit but it's obvious we are living through a unique moment in history," Krishnan wrote. "I'm going to be jumping all into something I've wanted to spend my energy on. More on that in the coming months."
Antonio Gracias
Gracias also assisted Musk with his Twitter purchase.
Youtube/Carlson School of Management
Private equity executive Antonio Gracias has also been linked to the new advisory group.
The Washington Post reported that Gracias, alongside Boring Company President Steve Davis, was among Musk's business associates helping to plan the coming department.
Gracias also assisted Musk with his Twitter deal, helping him line up financing for the $44 billion deal. Gracias was also a director of Tesla from 2007 to 2021.
Travis Kalanick
Travis Kalanick is the former CEO of Uber.
Mike Windle/Getty Images for Vanity Fair
Musk is also reportedly consulting Uber cofounder and former CEO Travis Kalanick about his plans for DOGE.
Kalanick is one of several tech titans being approached by Musk and Ramaswamy, according to a report from The Washington Post, which cited people familiar with the matter.
Kalanick was CEO of Uber from 2010 to 2017. He stepped down from the board in 2019.