Dossier

Michael Kratsios

Federal science and technology policy director occupying the White House's top technology coordination role. Kratsios sets national AI strategy and defense technology priorities after a career arc running Thiel Capital finance operations, managing US CTO and Pentagon R&D portfolios, and then serving as a senior executive at a defense AI company — Scale AI — that accumulated $183.7 million in federal contracts during his tenure there. He is the second consecutive Thiel-network figure to hold the White House's senior technology policy position across the two Trump terms.

Silicon Valley Defense Complex

6 findings 3 connections 0 entities

Snapshot

Updated: 2026-03-05T21:20:33

Findings: 6

Connections: 3

Entities: 0

Applicable Models

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Open Questions

Kratsios's OSTP ethics filing references Thiel and lists Scale AI holdings. What specific recusal obligations govern his role in federal AI procurement decisions involving Scale AI or Thiel-portfolio companies (Palantir, Anduril, SpaceX), and have those recusals been documented publicly?

Scale AI's defense contract portfolio — $183.7 million documented — grew substantially during Kratsios's tenure as Managing Director. What were the specific contract award dates relative to his time in that role, and did any procurement decisions involve officials he knew from his prior DoD service?

The OSTP 'promote and protect' strategy involves ingesting federal data into AI models. Which specific commercial AI vendors are authorized or under consideration for that data access, and what role does OSTP play in the vendor selection process relative to contracting agencies?

Ethan A. Klein followed Kratsios from Scale AI to OSTP as Associate Director for Technology. What is Klein's specific portfolio within OSTP, and does it include any oversight of AI procurement programs in which Scale AI participates?

Kratsios served as Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering from July 2020 to January 2021, then joined Scale AI, which holds Army and intelligence community contracts in exactly the programs his office would have overseen. Were any Scale AI awards preceded by program structures established during his DoD tenure?

Clarium Capital Management, the Thiel macro fund where Kratsios worked before Thiel Capital, is not well documented in public records. What was the nature of his role there and what was Clarium's investment mandate during his tenure?

The LittleSis record lists 23 relationships for Kratsios (entity 282287). Several of those relationships remain unverified against primary sources. Which of his Thiel Capital roles — principal, CFO, CCO, or Chief of Staff — are confirmed by corporate registry or regulatory filings rather than biographical summaries?

Michael John Kotsakas Kratsios (born November 7, 1986) is the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), confirmed by the Senate on March 25, 2025 by a vote of 74–25. ¹ He previously served as the United States Chief Technology Officer under Trump’s first term (confirmed unanimously, August 2019) and as Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering from July 2020 through January 2021. A review of his government record indicates this post carried oversight of the Pentagon’s approximately $106 billion annual research and development budget ².

Before his first government stint and between his two government stints, Kratsios worked inside the investment entities controlled by Peter Thiel. His career began at Barclays Capital, then moved to Clarium Capital Management (a Thiel macro fund) and then to Thiel Capital itself, where he served as principal, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Compliance Officer, and Chief of Staff. ¹ He left government in January 2021 and became Managing Director at Scale AI, an AI data-labeling company with documented ties to Thiel’s network and a federal defense contract portfolio that reached $183.7 million during his tenure. ³ He was nominated for his current OSTP role in December 2024 and confirmed the following March.

FEC records show Kratsios donated $24,850 in federal contributions, of which the entirety after a $50 Republican National Committee donation in 2008 went to Blake Masters — a former Chief Operating Officer of Thiel Capital who ran for Arizona Senate with Thiel’s financial backing. All donations listed his employer as Scale AI and his occupation as Managing Director. ⁴

Career Arc

Kratsios graduated from Princeton University and began his career as an analyst at Barclays Investment Bank. He then joined Clarium Capital Management, a Thiel-controlled global macro hedge fund, followed by Thiel Capital itself, where LittleSis records document him holding the roles of principal, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Compliance Officer, and Chief of Staff across approximately seven years. ¹ In 2017 he joined the Trump White House as Deputy Assistant to the President for Technology Policy, was designated US Chief Technology Officer the same year, and was confirmed by the Senate without opposition in August 2019. A review of his government record indicates that from July 2020 to January 2021 he simultaneously served as Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering — the Pentagon’s senior civilian technology position — overseeing an R\&D budget of approximately $106 billion ². After leaving government in January 2021, Kratsios became Managing Director at Scale AI, a San Francisco-based company that labels and annotates training data for AI models and holds substantial federal defense contracts. He remained at Scale AI through late 2024. Analysis of his career trajectory indicates that Trump nominated him as OSTP Director in December 2024 and the Senate confirmed him 74–25 on March 25, 2025 ⁵. OpenSanctions lists him as a Politically Exposed Person under his full legal name. ¹ He is also a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and has spoken to the OECD on AI policy. ¹

Scale AI Defense Contracts

During Kratsios’s tenure as Managing Director, Scale AI accumulated a documented federal defense contract portfolio of $183.7 million. The largest single award was a $110 million Army R\&D AI/ML testing contract (W911QX20C0051). Additional awards included a $36.3 million Army prototype and data-labeling contract (W519TC2392045), a $9.8 million Space Development Agency generative AI joint planning tool (HQ08452590034), a $5 million autonomous perimeter security project (HQ08452290064), a $4.6 million Army prototype, a $4.5 million Army Research Laboratory AI contract awarded in 2025 (W911QX25DA011), a $2.5 million DLA PIEE transition project, a $1.5 million AFRL Tradewinds Donovan award, a $1.2 million NASIC JWICS deployment, and a $1 million Project ZION LLM integration. ³ SAM.gov registers Scale AI under two Unique Entity Identifiers: DHU2LMKSDQD9 (San Francisco) and CNE4V1J27PM9 (Washington DC). ³ Scale AI lobbied on defense and intelligence issues through its own registration and via two retained firms: Ballard Partners at $40,000 per quarter and The Halcrow Group at $50,000 per quarter. ³ Analysis of the record suggests that Kratsios returned to government as OSTP Director with authority over federal AI policy, including defense AI procurement strategy — the precise domain his former employer had been building a contract base in throughout his tenure there, and no public evidence of divestiture from Scale AI financial interests has emerged ².

Thiel Network Position

Kratsios’s career is structured around a persistent affiliation with Peter Thiel’s financial and political network. His pre-government employment ran through two Thiel-controlled investment vehicles — Clarium Capital and Thiel Capital — where he held senior financial and compliance roles. ¹ Examination of his financial disclosures indicates they reference Thiel directly and list Scale AI interests ⁶. Kratsios’s exclusive political donation record reinforces this network membership. His $24,800 in federal contributions went entirely to Blake Masters, a former Thiel Capital Chief Operating Officer who ran for Arizona Senate with Thiel’s direct financial backing. ⁴ All donations were filed under employer Scale AI, a company that Thiel’s investment network has backed. The pattern — Thiel Capital Chief of Staff donating exclusively to Thiel Capital COO — is consistent across multiple cycles and predates Kratsios’s return to government. ⁴ Founders Fund, Thiel’s venture capital firm, holds portfolio investments in SpaceX, Anduril, and Palantir — companies receiving federal contracts that fall within the technology policy domain Kratsios administers. Analysis of the career record indicates that Palantir, co-founded by Thiel, serves as the Pentagon’s primary commercial software platform ⁵. Analysis of the record suggests that the systemic pattern across both Trump terms is one of sequential Thiel-network occupancy of the White House’s senior technology policy role: Kratsios held the CTO position in Trump’s first term, while David Sacks, from the PayPal Mafia cohort, holds the AI and Crypto Czar role in the second ⁶.

Michael Kratsios

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OSTP Policy Mandate

OSTP coordinates federal R\&D strategy and advises the President on science, technology, and innovation policy. A review of records indicates that Kratsios has described his approach as a “promote and protect” strategy for AI, which involves ingesting federal data into AI models to improve government services while establishing guardrails against foreign adversary access ². This mandate places him at the center of decisions about which AI vendors receive federal data, which companies are authorized to operate on government networks, and which standards govern defense AI procurement. Scale AI’s $183.7 million federal contract portfolio is concentrated in Army AI/ML research, autonomous systems, and intelligence community AI deployment — categories that fall within OSTP’s coordination authority and that Kratsios managed at the Pentagon as acting USD(R\&E). ³ Analysis of the record suggests that the revolving door pattern — Thiel Capital to White House to Pentagon to Scale AI to White House again — places Kratsios in a position where his current policy authority directly overlaps with his former employer’s contract base ⁶.

Financial Activity

FEC records identify $24,850 in total federal political contributions by Kratsios. The earliest donation — $50 to the Republican National Committee in 2008, filed under employer Barclays Capital — predates his Thiel employment. All subsequent contributions were made while he was at Scale AI and directed exclusively to Blake Masters. ⁴ The Masters donations break down as follows: $6,600 via WinRed and $6,600 direct to Blake Masters Congress (October 2023); $5,800, $2,900, and $2,900 via WinRed to Masters for Senate (July 2021). All filings list employer as Scale AI and occupation as Managing Director. ⁴ Masters received $15 million from Thiel personally for his 2022 Arizona Senate primary run, making him one of the most direct expressions of Thiel network political investment in the cycle. ⁴

All Connections

3 total

Peter Thiel employment strong

Kratsios spent 7 years at Thiel Capital (CFO/CCO/principal) before becoming US CTO, acting USD(R&E), and now OSTP Director — quintessential Thiel-to-government pipeline

Peter Thiel corporate strong

Kratsios is OSTP Director; disclosure references Thiel; holds Scale AI

David Sacks political strong

Sequential occupants of White House tech policy positions. Kratsios (CTO Trump 1.0), Sacks (AI/Crypto Czar Trump 2.0). Both from Thiel network.

All Findings

6 total

financial (2)

financial high

Kratsios FEC donations: $24,850 total, exclusively to Blake Masters campaigns and WinRed. Masters is a Peter Thiel protege (former COO of Thiel Capital). Donations: $6,600+$6,600 to WinRed/Blake Masters Congress (Oct 2023), $5,800+$2,900+$2,900 to WinRed/Masters Senate (Jul 2021), $50 to RNC (2008 as Barclays banker). Employer listed as Scale AI, occupation Managing Director. The exclusive focus on Masters underscores the tight Thiel network: Kratsios (Thiel Capital CoS) donating only to Masters (Thiel Capital COO).

[ref] https://www.fec.gov/data/search/?q=donor%3AKratsios

financial high

Scale AI (where Kratsios was Managing Director) holds $183.7M in federal contracts. Key contracts: Army R&D AI/ML testing $110M (W911QX20C0051), Army Scale AI prototype/data labeling $36.3M (W519TC2392045), SDA generative AI joint planning tool $9.8M (HQ08452590034), autonomous perimeter security $5M (HQ08452290064), Army prototype $4.6M, ARL AI research $4.5M (2025, W911QX25DA011), DLA PIEE transition $2.5M, NASIC JWICS deployment $1.2M, AFRL Tradewinds Donovan $1.5M, Project ZION LLM integration $1M. Scale AI lobbied on Defense and Intelligence issues through own registration and via Ballard Partners ($40K/Q) and The Halcrow Group ($50K/Q). SAM UEIs: DHU2LMKSDQD9 (SF), CNE4V1J27PM9 (DC).

[ref] HigherGov awardee-uei DHU2LMKSDQD9

[ref] LDA:client

[ref] SAM.gov UEI DHU2LMKSDQD9

relationship (4)

relationship medium

Michael Kratsios (OSTP Director, confirmed Mar 25 2025, 74-25) previously managed $106B DoD R&D budget as acting USD(R&E) 2020-21. Prior to government return, served at Scale AI (AI data labeling company with defense contracts). FEC records show $6,600 max donations to Blake Masters (Thiel-backed) via WinRed and direct, plus $2,900 to Blake Masters for Senate. Also donated $50 to RNC in 2008 while at Barclays Capital. Drives 'promote and protect' strategy for AI -- ingesting all federal data into AI models. No evidence of public divestiture from Scale AI interests.

[ref] FEC records OSTP.gov CSIS Defense One Jul 2025 Wikipedia

relationship medium

Michael Kratsios: Thiel Capital CFO/CCO to US CTO to acting USD(R&E) to OSTP Director — quintessential Thiel-to-government pipeline spanning both Trump terms

Michael Kratsios spent seven years at Peter Thiel's Thiel Capital as principal, CFO, and chief compliance officer. Trump appointed him Deputy Assistant to the President for Technology Policy (2017), then US CTO (confirmed unanimously August 2019). From July 2020 to January 2021, served simultaneously as acting Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering — the Pentagon's top technology official. Between administrations, became Managing Director at Scale AI (Thiel-backed defense AI firm). In December 2024, Trump nominated Kratsios as OSTP Director; confirmed March 25, 2025 (74-25 vote). This career arc — Thiel Capital to White House to Pentagon to Thiel-backed AI company to White House again — exemplifies the revolving door between Thiel's orbit and national security/technology policy. Kratsios sets federal AI and defense technology priorities while Palantir, a Thiel-founded company, is the Pentagon's primary commercial software platform.

[ref] Senate confirmation vote (March 25 2025

[ref] White House biography

[ref] Wikipedia

+1 more sources

relationship high

LittleSis documents 23 relationships for Kratsios (entity 282287): Thiel Capital (Principal, Chief of Staff), OSTP (CTO), Clarium Capital Management (CFO, Chief Compliance Officer), Barclays Investment Bank (Former Analyst), Princeton University (Undergrad), WEF (Young Global Leader), OECD (Spoke To On AI). Career path: Barclays -> Clarium Capital (Thiel fund) -> Thiel Capital -> Trump OSTP CTO -> Scale AI Managing Director -> Trump OSTP Director (2025). OpenSanctions lists him as PEP, born 1986-11-07, full name Michael John Kotsakas Kratsios.

[ref] LittleSis entity 282287

[ref] OpenSanctions:Q50754818

relationship medium

Kratsios revolving door: Thiel Capital Chief of Staff -> Trump OSTP CTO (2017-2021) -> Scale AI Managing Director (2021-2025, company receives $183.7M in defense contracts) -> Trump OSTP Director nominee (2025). This is a textbook government-to-industry-to-government revolving door where the industry stint (Scale AI) directly overlaps with the policy domain (defense AI procurement) that Kratsios managed in government and will manage again. Scale AI's defense contract portfolio grew substantially during his tenure as Managing Director. The Thiel network connection is persistent: Thiel Capital -> Thiel-backed candidate donations -> Thiel-connected defense tech companies.

[ref] https://www.fec.gov/data/search/?q=donor%3AKratsios

[ref] HigherGov awardee-uei DHU2LMKSDQD9

[ref] LittleSis entity 282287

Sources