Trump remembers to appoint science panel, fills it mostly with tech bros

Donald Trump has named the first members of his President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), largely comprising Trump allies in the tech industry and one actual scientist.

PCAST is an advisory council reporting directly to the president, and has existed in its current form since President Bush in 1990. It has been re-chartered by each incoming administration since.

The latest PCAST was established by an executive order in January 2025, with two co-chairs: Assistant to the President for Science and Technology (APST) Michael Kratsios, and Special Advisor for AI and Crypto David Sacks. Trump is only now filling the rest of the board out, and has named 13 members so far, instead of the 24 it typically comprises.

Many of these lucky 13 are tech industry executives who were quick to demonstrate their allegiance to the president following his inauguration last year, such as Meta's ...